There has been plenty of roster movement between NHL teams and the taxi squad on a daily basis this season. Although some major names may be highlighted in separate articles, this is where you’ll find the majority of that shuffle news each day.
West Division
- The Los Angeles Kings have placed Lias Andersson and Austin Strand on the taxi squad while sending Drake Rymsha, Mark Alt, and Tobias Bjornfot back to the minor leagues. The Kings have been making daily moves to maximize their cap room while minimizing salary paid out on off days.
North Division
- The Montreal Canadiens have sent Cale Fleury and Ryan Poehling to the AHL’s Laval Rocket, though a schedule for the minor league team has still not been announced. The two young players will get a chance to actually play once the Rocket start up, something neither of them could say so far this season with Montreal. Fleury, 22, played in 41 games last season but has been pushed down the depth chart by some offseason additions, while Poehling, 22, played 27 last season but scored just two points. The team has also flipped Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Nick Suzuki between the taxi squad and roster, the rotation that they promised to continue with their young players.
- The Calgary Flames have recalled Brett Ritchie from the minor leagues, though it’s not clear if he will be on the taxi squad or NHL roster. Though he’s currently not listed on the roster, the Flames already had six players on their taxi squad meaning there wouldn’t be room. Ritchie could perhaps be getting a chance on the fourth line after signing a one-year deal last month.
- Before their game tonight, the Vancouver Canucks have recalled Olli Juolevi, moving Tyler Motte to injured reserve. The young Juolevi is expected to be back in the lineup after watching his team get carved up by the Maple Leafs the last two games, meaning he has another opportunity to establish himself in the NHL.
Central Division
- The Detroit Red Wings have sent Givani Smith and Mathias Brome to the taxi squad, as they bask in their 4-1 defeat of the Panthers last night. Smith was the star of the show, recording a “Gordie Howe hat trick” by scoring in the second period, assisting on Robby Fabbri‘s third-period tally, and fighting Aaron Ekblad after laying a huge (controversial) hit on MacKenzie Weegar. Smith has been an impressive performer for the Red Wings this season and should be back in the lineup tomorrow.
- Speaking of the Panthers, they have moved Mason Marchment off the active roster to the taxi squad. Marchment, 25, played just under eight minutes last night in his season debut, registering three hits.
- The Dallas Stars have reassigned Landon Bow and Tanner Kero to the taxi squad. Bow was really only up because Anton Khudobin was serving some team-imposed discipline, but he will now return to his role as the taxi squad goaltender. Kero meanwhile has moved up and down nearly every day, but will soon have to clear waivers again. He has played in seven games this season; once he plays ten, he will no longer be eligible to go to the taxi squad without clearing.
East Division
- The Washington Capitals have assigned Pheonix Copley and Martin Fehervary from the AHL to the taxi squad, an interesting move given the team was expected to have Evgeny Kuznetsov and Ilya Samsonov coming off the COVID Protocol list in the coming days. Perhaps just some extra depth was required for tomorrow’s game against the Flyers. A few hours later they sent Philippe Maillet down to the taxi squad, following Kuznetsov’s return to practice.
This page will be updated throughout the day.