Eight games grace the NHL schedule tonight, including a prime Atlantic Division matchup between the Buffalo Sabres and Tampa Bay Lightning. The Sabres are looking for their 11th consecutive win, while the Lightning will try to leapfrog Buffalo and Toronto for first place in the division. As teams prepare for the night’s action, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves around the league.
- The Laval Rocket have released Ryan Sproul from his professional tryout contract, the second such transaction of the young defenseman’s season. Sproul was originally on a PTO with the Toronto Marlies, but played just one game for them before moving over to the Montreal Canadiens’ AHL affiliate. In 11 games for Laval, Sproul—a second-round pick of the Detroit Red Wings in 2011—registered five points.
- Landon Bow is on his way back to the minor leagues, reassigned by the Dallas Stars today. Bow made his NHL debut earlier this month but with Ben Bishop close to a return will no longer be needed at that level. The 23-year old goaltender will return to the AHL and try to continue developing in order to push for a roster spot in the future.
- The Calgary Flames have decided that it’s better for young forward Dillon Dube to get lots of playing time in the minor leagues instead of watching games from the bench or press box in the NHL. The 20-year old was given just eight minutes of ice time in Calgary’s recent overtime loss to the Dallas Stars, and has now been sent to the AHL. A second round pick from 2016, Dube has a bright future in Calgary and needs time to continue to refine his game at both ends of the rink.
- Similarly, the Boston Bruins have sent Anders Bjork back to the AHL after getting just over nine minutes on Monday night. The former Notre Dame standout has just 15 points in 50 games since turning pro, and will try to get a reset in the minor leagues to unlock some of that offensive potential.
- The Colorado Avalanche have brought in reinforcements on the blue line in the form of veteran defender Mark Alt. A free agent addition this summer, Alt has been serving as the captain of the AHL’s Colorado Eagles this season, but the team announced today that he is on his way up to the bigs. In a corresponding move, rookie forward Sheldon Dries has been reassigned to the AHL. Dries has registered four points in 15 games with the Avs so far this season and has fit in well with the NHL club.