Taxi Squad Shuffle: 01/18/21
It appears as though there will be daily movement this season between the active roster and taxi squad this season. Although some major names may be highlighted in separate articles, this is where you’ll find the majority of shuffle news each day.
- Pierre Engvall has been promoted from the AHL roster to the taxi squad by the Toronto Maple Leafs after Nick Robertson suffered a knee injury on the weekend. Engvall’s $1.25MM contract actually makes it difficult for him to see the active roster given how tight the cap space is for Toronto, though it could be possible in the coming days should Aaron Dell and Jason Spezza both clear waivers today.
- Given it is a game day for the Montreal Canadiens, Alexander Romanov has been recalled from the taxi squad. The rookie defenseman has been excellent so far for Montreal but will find himself on the taxi squad between games in order for the Canadiens to accrue extra cap space throughout the season.
- The Winnipeg Jets have recalled both Ville Heinola and Kristian Vesalainen from the taxi squad, while moving Tucker Poolman to non-roster status. Poolman has been listed on the COVID Related Protocol Absences list for the last two days.
- The same can be said about Shayne Gostisbehere of the Philadelphia Flyers, who today was given the non-roster designation as well. Connor Bunnaman has been recalled from the taxi squad for the Flyers, who are expected to be without Sean Couturier when they take on the Buffalo Sabres this evening.
- Mackenzie MacEachern has been assigned to the taxi squad by the St. Louis Blues, while Jake Walman is up in his place. Colton Parayko missed practice today but is expected to play, meaning Walman’s recall may just be precautionary.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled Kevin Czuczman to their taxi squad from AHL camp, adding some depth to the traveling group after placing Mike Matheson on injured reserve. The team also assigned Sam Lafferty to the taxi squad, while sending Anthony Angello and Frederick Gaudreau to the AHL. Given that Kasperi Kapanen practiced today and is clear of the COVID protocols, expect him to be added to the active roster before tomorrow’s game.
- Linus Ullmark will miss tonight’s game for the Buffalo Sabres due to personal reasons, so the team has recalled Jonas Johansson from the taxi squad. Carter Hutton, the team’s other goaltender, allowed five goals on 27 shots in his first appearance this season.
- The Nashville Predators have recalled Mathieu Olivier from the taxi squad, replacing him with Ben Harpur who was recalled from the AHL. Olivier played in the Predators game on Saturday, recording six hits in just under 12 minutes of ice time.
This page will be updated throughout the day.
Calgary Flames Sign Brett Ritchie To One-Year Deal
The Calgary Flames announced they have signed Brett Ritchie to a one-year, two-way deal at $700K. The forward was already in camp on a professional tryout. The team immediately placed him on waivers.
Ritchie was a late addition to the Flames’ training camp roster as the team only signed him to a PTO eight days ago. However, the Flames saw enough from the physical winger to bring him in as a depth option on the right side. His 6-foot-4, 220-pound body could come in handy down the road with so many games close together this season.
The 27-year-old spent the 2019-20 season with the Boston Bruins, splitting time between Boston and the Providence Bruins of the AHL. He played in 27 games for Boston, picking up two goals, six points and 21 penalty minutes, while appearing in another 12 games for Providence. He was a regular in the Dallas Stars’ lineup for a few years before signing being non-tendered and then signing with Boston last offseason. He was also non-tendered by Boston at the end of last season.
Blackhawks Place Nick Seeler On Unconditional Waivers
Sunday: CapFriendly reports that Seeler cleared waivers. Head coach Jeremy Colliton added earlier today that Seeler didn’t report to his AHL assignment, which is why he ened up on unconditional waivers to terminate his contract, according to Chicago Sun-Times’ Ben Pope.
Saturday: The Blackhawks are parting ways with defenseman Nick Seeler. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that Chicago has placed the blueliner on unconditional waivers to terminate his contract.
The 27-year-old didn’t see a lot of action last season as he was the seventh defenseman for Minnesota for most of the year but got into just six NHL games plus six more on a conditioning stint. In February, Seeler was scooped up off waivers by Chicago but only got into six contests with them while also spending time as a healthy scratch. Overall, he played in just a dozen games last year after being a regular for most of 2018-19 with Minnesota when he suited up 71 times.
Seeler cleared waivers earlier this week and was sent to AHL Rockford instead of to the taxi squad, signalling that he wasn’t in Chicago’s short-term plans. Still, it is a little surprising to see him request this placement as he’ll be walking away from a $750K one-way salary, something that he may have some difficulty getting at this point on the open market. With Seeler’s AAV being just $725K, the team won’t get any cap relief from his release, assuming he passes through unclaimed on Sunday.
Oilers Claim Troy Grosenick Off Waivers
With Mike Smith on LTIR, the Oilers needed to add some goaltending depth. They’ve done just that as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that they’ve claimed Troy Grosenick off waivers from the Kings.
The 31-year-old was signed by Los Angeles early in unrestricted free agency in October to serve as their third-string option behind Jonathan Quick and Calvin Petersen. With Petersen being unavailable to start the season, Grosenick made their opening night roster but now that their intended tandem is intact, Grosenick was waived yesterday as they attempted to put him into that number three role.
The veteran has just two games of NHL experience, both with San Jose back in 2014-15 and has effectively been an AHL starter since then. Last year, he played in 33 games with AHL Milwaukee, posting a 2.29 GAA with a .920 SV% along with two shutouts which helped him earn a small raise at the AHL level in his one-year, two-way deal worth $700K in the NHL and $350K in the minors.
While Grosenick isn’t an ideal NHL backup for any extended period of time, he’s likely a better option than Stuart Skinner who is currently their backup but struggled considerably in the minors last season while Olivier Rodrigue was recalled as well but has to undergo a two-week quarantine period. Grosenick will have to do the same so Mikko Koskinen will likely see all of Edmonton’s game action for at least the next couple of weeks until Grosenick can officially join the team.
Meanwhile, Kings blueliner Mark Alt, who also was waived yesterday, was not claimed.
Los Angeles Kings Place Two On Waivers
Waivers today includes just two players and both are from the Los Angeles Kings. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reports that Mark Alt and Troy Grosenick have been placed on waivers.
The placements would suggest that the Kings will get some players off the COVID Protocol Related Absences list before tomorrow night’s game against the Minnesota Wild. Los Angeles was using Grosenick as a backup for Jonathan Quick while Calvin Petersen remained unable to practice or play, while the return of either Sean Walker or Kurtis MacDermid would make Alt expendable.
Both players should probably clear and be assigned to the taxi squad tomorrow. If they do, Matt Villalta, who was serving as the third-string goaltender, will likely be reassigned to AHL training camp. All of that relies on there being a lack of claims though, something that certainly isn’t a guarantee at this point. In the early season we’ve already seen several goaltenders nabbed off waivers and though Grosenick has almost no NHL experience he does have a long track record of success in the minor leagues.
Alt too has only played in a handful of NHL games, 19 to be exact including last night’s overtime loss, but has been a useful minor league option for the last several years. The 29-year-old was a second-round pick of the Carolina Hurricanes back in 2010 and scored 13 points in 55 games last season for the Colorado Eagles.
Winnipeg Jets Claim Anton Forsberg
Anton Forsberg is on his third team in a week, claimed off waivers by the Winnipeg Jets. Forsberg never did leave Edmonton when the Carolina Hurricanes claimed him from the Oilers, meaning he will be able to travel to Winnipeg and not have to face a border quarantine. He will, however, need to stay on the Jets active roster for the time being and cannot be assigned to the taxi squad or minor leagues until he clears waivers.
Of course, carrying a third goaltender on the active roster really isn’t an issue for the Jets at the moment, given they’re already into long-term injured reserve space. The team will have to move one of the players from their roster onto the taxi squad, but that shouldn’t be an issue given Kristian Vesalainen and Logan Stanley, two waiver-exempt players, were both scratched last night. (UPDATE: Vesalainen and Stanley have both been sent to the taxi squad.)
Forsberg meanwhile becomes the Jets third-string option after Winnipeg lost Eric Comrie to the New Jersey Devils. The veteran netminder still doesn’t figure to play a ton this season but adds some depth to a position the Jets can ill afford to be weak at. Connor Hellebuyck carries the load, but if he were to ever go down to injury or illness, Laurent Brossoit is the only other Jets netminder signed to an NHL deal in North America.
Minor Transactions: 01/15/21
The NHL moves will come fast and furious now that the season has begun, but that doesn’t mean we’ll stop keeping an eye on overseas transactions. This page will be updated throughout the day with all the notable minor moves around the world of hockey.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning have moved Boo Nieves to the AHL as minor league camps open after he was signed and cleared waivers earlier this week. The 26-year-old forward will serve as valuable depth for a team looking to take another run at the Stanley Cup.
- Theodor Niederbach, a second-round pick by the Detroit Red Wings, has been extended by Frolunda and then loaned to MODO for the rest of the season. The Swedish junior league that Niederbach had been playing in has shut down the rest of their season, meaning this was one of the only ways he could continue to get playing time.
- Marko Dano has been recalled from loan by the Winnipeg Jets and assigned to the Manitoba Moose for AHL training camp. The depth forward was playing for Trencin Dukla in Slovakia, where he had three points in two games.
Anton Forsberg Placed On Waivers
The Carolina Hurricanes have indeed placed Anton Forsberg back on waivers according to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, just two days after claiming him from the Edmonton Oilers. In the meantime, the team was able to slip Alex Nedeljkovic through waivers, meaning they still had some depth at the goaltending position. They’ll try to do the same here with Forsberg, though Edmonton or another team could now claim him. Importantly, Chris Johnston of Sportsnet reports that Forsberg is still in Edmonton and wouldn’t need a 14-day quarantine if claimed by a different Canadian team.
If Edmonton is the only team to put in a claim, they would be able to move Forsberg directly to their taxi squad.
The Hurricanes started shopping Forsberg yesterday, hoping to complete a quick flip once Nedeljkovic got through waivers. With that in mind, clearing waivers may actually increase the veteran goaltender’s trade value. Should Forsberg clear, he would be able to be traded and then sent immediately to a taxi squad or minor league affiliate, adding depth to an organization. The need isn’t there for the Hurricanes anymore, but perhaps they can turn him into a late-round pick for nothing more than a waiver claim.
Seven Players Clear Waivers
Jan 14: All seven players have cleared waivers and can report to a taxi squad or the minor leagues.
Jan 13: The first day of the hockey season is upon us and waivers are still jam-packed. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reports that Par Lindholm (BOS), Devin Shore (EDM), Dmytro Timashov (NYI), Boo Nieves (TBL), Craig Anderson (WSH), Rodrigo Abols (FLA), and Kevin Connauton (FLA) are on waivers today.
Of course, several of these players did not have official contracts filed before today, meaning they now do.
Washington Capitals reporter Mike Vogel tweets that the team has signed Anderson to a one-year deal after bringing him into camp on a professional tryout. The deal will carry an average annual value of $700K. He will report to the team’s practice squad if he clears waivers. The Capitals have already announced that the team will go with Ilya Samsonov and Vitek Vanecek to start the season, but Anderson certainly provides a lot of experience at the position if anything goes sideways. The 39-year-old goaltender has 648 games played in his long career and carries a save percentage of .913.
Shore and Nieves are both brand new signings that their teams announced, both two-way contracts worth around $700K. Nieves’ deal was announced yesterday by the Tampa Bay Lightning, while the Edmonton Oilers announced Shore’s deal earlier this morning.
Timashov and Connauton were also both unsigned as of today, though it was clear that both had earned contracts already. The New York Islanders have been very coy with all of their training camp deals, while the Florida Panthers had kept Connauton with the group on a professional tryout. Their official contracts should be announced at some point today, given they are now on waivers.
Florida Panthers Sign Kevin Connauton
The Florida Panthers have officially agreed to terms with Kevin Connauton, though it was clear a contract was coming when he was placed on waivers earlier today. The veteran defenseman has agreed to a one-year, two-way contract and will be assigned directly to the taxi squad should he clear waivers tomorrow.
Connauton, 30, is what you might call a journeyman, suiting up for four different NHL teams before joining the Panthers on a professional tryout. Most recently it was with the Colorado Avalanche, where he ended up playing just four regular season games but entered their postseason lineup for a handful of games in the bubble as well.
While he likely shouldn’t be penciled into the lineup on a nightly basis, Connauton obviously did enough at training camp to prove he can still be a valuable depth piece. How the Florida defense shakes out is one of the most interesting things to watch in the early season, as Keith Yandle is currently on the outside looking in.
The release does not indicate how much Connauton will make this season, but it seems unlikely that the deal would carry an NHL salary much more than $700K. While he’s on the taxi squad, he’ll be earning the AHL amount of his two-way deal.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images