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Toronto Maple Leafs Emergency Recall Joseph Woll

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The Toronto Maple Leafs have recalled goalie Joseph Woll from the AHL’s Toronto Marlies on an emergency basis, the team tweeted Thursday.

The move was announced as starting netminder Ilya Samsonov is assumedly away from the team for the birth of his and his wife’s first child. Woll will back up Matt Murray tonight when the Leafs play the Florida Panthers, their second straight game against a hungry opponent in the thick of the Eastern Conference Wild Card race.

Woll, 24, is quickly seeing his stock rise with impressive performances in both the big leagues and the minors this season. He’s been shuttled between leagues multiple times over the past few months as minor injuries have affected Samsonov and Murray.

He’s played in three games with the Maple Leafs this season, posting a 2-1-0 record with a 2.04 goals-against average and .938 save percentage. He stopped 25 of 26 shots in his last appearance, a win against the Calgary Flames in early March. While it’s unlikely Woll plays during what will be a short call-up in Samsonov’s absence, he’s earned more opportunities at the NHL level with similarly strong numbers in the minors.

New York Rangers Sign Bryce McConnell-Barker

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According to a team tweet, the New York Rangers have signed forward Bryce McConnell-Barker to a three-year, entry-level contract beginning with the 2023-24 season. PuckPedia reports the contract carries an $870,000 cap hit, broken down per year into $775,000 in base salary, $95,000 in signing bonuses, $80,000 in games played bonuses, and $80,000 in minors salary.

A natural center, the 18-year-old forward was selected by the Rangers in the third round of the 2022 NHL Draft. The pick used to select him, 97th overall, was acquired from the Colorado Avalanche in the Alexandar Georgiev trade on draft day.

McConnell-Barker spent the last two seasons with the Soo Greyhounds of the OHL after losing the entire 2020-21 campaign due to COVID. There, he’s played in 134 games and recorded 52 goals and 71 assists. The 6-foot-2, 194-pound forward also served as captain for the Greyhounds this season.

While McConnell-Barker’s -29 rating this season may be disappointing for a player heralded for his two-way game, he had a weak supporting cast on the Greyhounds, who sit with just 19 wins on the season with a handful of games remaining and are mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. His production in 2022-23 has been promising, putting up over a point per game in his post-draft year.

McConnell-Barker is expected to return to the OHL next year, as he remains ineligible for assignment to the AHL until his age 20 season (2024-25).

Vancouver Canucks Extend Christian Wolanin

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The Vancouver Canucks have signed defenseman Christian Wolanin to a two-year, two-way contract extension, according to a team announcement. Per CapFriendly, the contract is worth a league minimum of $775,000 per season, with a $500,000 salary in the minors.

The deal, announced Thursday, will keep Wolanin with the Canucks through the 2024-25 season. The 28-year-old defenseman was acquired by Vancouver in free agency last July, signing a one-year contract.

Wolanin has played in 15 games for the Canucks this season, recording three assists. While he’s spent the majority of the campaign with the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks, Wolanin has remained on the NHL roster since Vancouver recalled him on February 18, save for a paper transaction back to Abbotsford on trade deadline day to make him eligible to suit up in the Calder Cup Playoffs.

“Christian has been a key contributor at both the AHL and NHL level this season,” Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin said in a statement. “He has developed nicely under the watchful eye of our Abbotsford coaching staff and player development team. This has allowed him to step into his current role in the NHL and show that he can help our team get results.”

Wolanin was originally selected by the Ottawa Senators in the fourth round of the 2015 NHL Draft. He has appeared in a total of 85 NHL games, posting six goals and 17 assists.

After largely splitting time between the NHL and AHL over the past five seasons, Wolanin found some stability in Abbotsford to begin the year. He did not disappoint, as Wolanin is amidst the best campaign of his professional career. In 49 games with Abbotsford, where he’s sure to return for the postseason, Wolanin registered an assist per game and added six goals for 55 points, accompanied by a +12 rating.

Injury Notes: Blackwell, Forsberg, Roy

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Without much to play for down the stretch, injured players with the Chicago Blackhawks may start opting for clean-up surgeries to ensure they are ready for training camp next season. That seems to be the case with Colin Blackwell, who has undergone sports hernia surgery this week after last playing in February.

Blackwell, 29, signed a two-year, $2.4MM contract with the Blackhawks last summer, meaning he’ll carry a $1.2MM cap hit as one of the team’s bottom-six options next season. After two nice offensive seasons, his production dropped this year, resulting in just two goals in 53 games. The surgery comes with a recovery timeline of 12 weeks, meaning his season is over early.

  • The same thing can be said about Anton Forsberg and Parker Kelly of the Ottawa Senators, as Claire Hanna of TSN reports they have been ruled out for the rest of the regular season. The Senators, of course, could still technically make the playoffs, though they’d have to leapfrog three teams to do so. Both players are already signed for next season, so they can work toward full health for 2023-24.
  • Nicolas Roy, meanwhile, has been activated from injured reserve for the Vegas Golden Knights and will be available to them tonight against the Calgary Flames. Roy last played on February 21 and gives the Golden Knights another interesting forward option that can play up and down the lineup.

Pittsburgh Penguins Recall Dustin Tokarski, Filip Hallander

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With the Pittsburgh Penguins barely holding onto a playoff position, the last thing fans want to see are emergency recalls. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what they received today, as the Penguins announced the call-up of Dustin Tokarski and Filip Hallander from the AHL on an emergency basis.

Shelly Anderson of Pittsburgh Hockey Now reports that head coach Mike Sullivan will speak with the media two hours before tonight’s game against the Dallas Stars.

Pittsburgh is coming off a massive win against the Colorado Avalanche last night, stopping a four-game losing streak that threatened the team’s playoff hopes. With a one-point lead on the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference wild card race, every game seems like a must-win for the Penguins these days.

Casey DeSmith, who is dealing with an illness, was healthy enough to serve as the backup last night, but Tokarski’s recall suggests that Tristan Jarry may have to play back-to-back games, unless there is another injury that has popped up in the hours since leaving Denver.

The minor league veteran does have a .917 save percentage in 29 appearances with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins this year but posted an .897 in four games with Pittsburgh earlier. With so much importance attached to every game at this point, it would be a disappointing outcome to see Tokarski have to carry the load tonight in Dallas.

John Carlson Expected To Return For Washington Capitals

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The time has come. After nearly half a season on injured reserve, John Carlson will be back in the Washington Capitals lineup tonight. To make room to activate him from LTIR, the Capitals have loaned Zachary Fucale and Gabriel Carlsson to the AHL.

Carlson missed 36 games after taking a Brenden Dillon slapshot to the head in late December. The veteran defenseman suffered a fractured skull, and was ruled out indefinitely. As the Capitals pointed out in their announcement today, things may have gone very differently had Carlson not been sidelined for so long.

In the 30 games he did play, the team went 18-10-2, a winning percentage that would have them securely in the playoff picture had it continued all year. Instead, the Capitals sit six points behind the Pittsburgh Penguins for the final wildcard spot with just ten games to play.

While it isn’t over just yet, Washington essentially threw in the towel at the trade deadline, by sending Dmitry Orlov, Garnet Hathaway, Marcus Johansson, Erik Gustafsson, and Lars Eller to contending clubs in exchange for (mostly) draft picks. Carlson’s return likely won’t be enough to get them to the playoffs this season, but it will be good to see him back on the ice taking part in an NHL game after such a scary injury.

Unless he does something spectacular in the next few weeks, Carlson will likely miss the Norris Trophy ballot for the first time since 2017. He finished in the top 12 in each of the last five years, including a second-place spot in 2020. A full season in 2022-23 will be a huge step toward the Capitals’ returning to the postseason.

Hockey Canada Names World Championship Management Team

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St. Louis Blues general manager Doug Armstrong will lead Canada’s management team for the upcoming IIHF World Championship, taking the same role for the national program. He’ll be joined by Steve Yzerman, serving as associate GM, Shane Doan as assisting GM, and Scott Salmond as senior vice president of hockey operations. Tyler Dietrich, Jim McKenzie, Jamie Pushor, and Tim Taylor will round out the player selection committee.

Salmond released a statement:

We are excited to unveil the experienced management group and selection committee that will lead Team Canada at the 2023 IIHF World Championship, and that will help build the staff and roster that will wear the Maple Leaf in May. Doug, Steve and Shane have been successful in the NHL and at the Olympics, world championships and world cups, and Jim, Jamie and Tim bring critical NHL experience. We are fortunate to have six individuals with extensive pedigrees who are dedicated to helping us build towards our goal of winning a gold medal in Tampere and Riga.

The tournament, scheduled to begin on May 12 when Canada faces the co-hosting Latvian squad, will see a group of NHL players that failed to make the postseason (or were eliminated quickly) take part in the highest-level international tournament of the year.

While it isn’t true best-on-best, as several teams will still be chasing down the Stanley Cup, the Worlds have taken on a bigger stage since NHL players were once again held out of the Olympics. Last year, a Finnish team led by players like Mikael Granlund, Miro Heiskanen, and Joel Armia was able to defeat a Canadian squad with the likes of Mathew Barzal, Dylan Cozens, Pierre-Luc Dubois, and Thomas Chabot in the gold medal match.

Columbus Blue Jackets Loan Cole Sillinger To AHL

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The Columbus Blue Jackets are playing for the draft lottery these days, but have found an opportunity for one of their young talents. Cole Sillinger has been loaned to the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL to compete in a Calder Cup chase. Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen explains:

This is a great opportunity for Cole to join the Monsters as they continue to push for a berth in the Calder Cup Playoffs. Taking on additional responsibilities and playing games with playoff implications, and hopefully games in the playoffs, is hugely important to the development of a young player like Cole.

Zach Werenski was in a similar position a few years ago and the experience helped him individually and from a team perspective as it resulted in a Calder Cup championship.

This appears to have been the team’s plan for some time. At the trade deadline, the team “papered” him to the minor leagues, sending him down and recalling him on the same day. That made him eligible for the AHL playoffs, despite never actually leaving the NHL club at that point.

In fact, Sillinger has never played in the AHL at all. The 19-year-old forward stepped directly into the NHL after being selected 12th overall in 2021, and has played for the Blue Jackets ever since. While his rookie season went exceptionally well, the young center has just three goals and 11 points in 64 games this year, showing the same sophomore slump many top prospects experience.

Detroit Red Wings Recall Alex Nedeljkovic

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The Detroit Red Wings have brought Alex Nedeljkovic back up from the minor leagues, recalling him under emergency conditions today. Ville Husso was absent at practice, meaning Magnus Hellberg is expected to start when the Red Wings take on the St. Louis Blues this evening.

Nedeljkovic, 27, played his way out of the NHL after exploding onto the scene a few years ago, and has been starting for the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL for most of this season. The former Carolina Hurricanes prospect was given a two-year, $6MM contract in 2021 after being acquired in a trade that was generally considered a steal for the Red Wings.

Giving up a third-round pick for a starting goaltender looked great initially, but Nedeljkovic would post a .901 save percentage in 59 games with the Red Wings last season, leading to the summer acquisition of Husso. This year, in nine appearances in the NHL, Nedeljkovic has an .880 save percentage.

He cleared waivers, was assigned to the minor leagues, and appears to be headed for unrestricted free agency this summer. Whatever he can do down the stretch for Detroit will only help his case in the offseason, as he looks for another chance to play regularly in the NHL.

Ottawa Senators Sign Tyler Kleven

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The Ottawa Senators have officially signed prospect Tyler Kleven, ending his college career after three seasons at the University of North Dakota. The contract will start this season, with Kleven joining the Senators tomorrow.

General manager Pierre Dorion released the following:

We’re very pleased that Tyler has recently made the decision to begin his pro career. He’s a big, rangy, hard-nosed defender who maintains a physical presence while on the ice and an ability to hammer the puck with his shot. We’ve been especially impressed with his overall development dating to his draft year.

Kleven, 21, will join former college teammates Shane Pinto and Jake Sanderson with the Senators as he tries to carve out a role as a defensive defenseman at the next level. The 44th overall pick from 2020 recorded just 35 points in his three years with the Fighting Hawks but added 214 penalty minutes in an uber-physical shutdown role.

Given Ottawa’s offensive talent on the blue line, a player like Kleven might be a perfect fit. Sanderson, Thomas Chabot, Jakob Chychrun, and Erik Brannstrom can all move the puck effectively, meaning Kleven can be insulated as he gets used to the speed of the professional game.

Moving forward, there will be plenty of playing time up for grabs, as Travis Hamonic and Nick Holden are both set to become unrestricted free agents at the end of the year. While it’s no guarantee that Kleven will make the team out of camp for 2023-24, there is an obvious path to a roster spot available.

Starting his entry-level deal immediately means he is just over two years away from restricted free agency. Kleven’s contract will expire at the end of the 2024-25 campaign.

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