News and notes from around the NHL this evening:
- The Boston Bruins recalled forward Austin Czarnik from the Providence Bruins, reports Ty Anderson of WEEI. The recall comes on the heels of the Bruins announcing that Ryan Spooner is out indefinitely with a concussion. Czarnik is treading water in his first NHL season, scoring 5G and 8A in 47 NHL games. He also has 2G and 6A in 7 AHL games. The Bruins signed Czarnik out of Miami University (OH) in May 2015 and he’s been with Providence up until the start of this season.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets make two notable additions to its game roster tonight against against the New Jersey Devils, reports the Columbus Dispatch’s Tom Reed. Coach John Tortorella inserts Finnish rookie defender Markus Nutivaara back into the lineup after Nutivaara sat out of Columbus’s last three games. Nutivaara was the odd man out after the Blue Jackets acquired defenseman Kyle Quincey at the NHL trade deadline. The Blue Jackets also replace injured forward Josh Anderson with rookie T.J. Tynan. This will be Tynan’s NHL debut. Right now he has 7G and 23A in 55 games for the AHL Cleveland Monsters.
- The Blue Jackets also announced that defenseman Ryan Murray is scratched from tonight’s game due to a lower-body injury. The former 2nd overall draft pick has 2G and 9A in 59 games while averaging 18:37 minutes a game. Murray had somewhat of a breakout campaign last year before regressing production-wise. Murray and Nail Yakupov highlight the NHL Entry Draft’s unpredictability as both were drafted with the first two picks, and yet neither has met expectations.
- Vegas Golden Knights GM George McPhee spoke to Sportsnet’s Chris Johnson today about potential expansion draft selections. While McPhee was coy about specific strategy, he indicated that he’s received calls from many teams —helpful because those calls shape how the Expansion Draft team predicts who may be available at the draft. McPhee also stated that he will not make agreements to avoid drafting an exposed player until closer to the expansion draft itself to maximize the return.
- The New Jersey Devils have reassigned defenseman Karl Stollery and forward Kevin Rooney back down to the AHL Albany Devils. Stolley has played 11 games for New Jersey so far this season, recording three assists in that timeframe. He’ll rejoin Albany where he has 1G and 13A in 44 games. Rooney failed to record a point in three games for New Jersey, but has 10G and 7A in 57 games for Albany.