AHL Shuffle: 04/14/23

With just two games left on the regular-season schedule, today marks the first day of the offseason for quite a few clubs. As a result, many are sending players down to their AHL squads so that their affiliates can have as many reinforcements as possible for crucial late-season games. We’ll keep track of those moves here:

• The Montreal Canadiens have reassigned forwards Lucas Condotta and Joel Teasdale, along with defenseman Frederic Allard, to the Laval Rocket. Condotta memorably got his first NHL goal on his first NHL shift last night, and Teasdale got an assist on the play as well, which was his first NHL point. Allard, on the other hand, is still waiting for his first NHL point with four career games played. All three players will join the Rocket in their final regular-season game tonight, a crucial matchup against the Syracuse Crunch that Laval will hope to win to distance themselves from the Cleveland Monsters for the Northeast Division’s final playoff spot.
• The St. Louis Blues reassigned defenseman Tyler Tucker and goalie Vadim Zherenko to their affiliate, the Springfield Thunderbirds. Tucker has played 26 games in the NHL this season and has 21 points in 39 AHL games, last playing for Springfield on April 8th. Zherenko, 22, has a .918 save percentage through 18 games for Springfield this season and was a 2019 seventh-round pick. The Thunderbirds have their playoff spot locked up but with three games remaining can still earn a higher seed.
• The Chicago Blackhawks reassigned forwards Buddy Robinson and Joey Anderson to their affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs. The IceHogs are in pole position to claim the final playoff spot in the Central Division and can still feasibly catch the Iowa Wild for the number-four seed. Robinson, 31, is coming off an impressive two-game stretch with the Blackhawks where he scored three points, including his first goal of the year in Tuesday’s stunning 4-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. Anderson, 24, was acquired from the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Jake McCabe trade and scored six points in 24 games with Chicago.
• The Minnesota Wild reassigned Samuel Walker, Damien Giroux, Nick Swaney, and Marco Rossi to their affiliate, the Iowa Wild, and placed veteran forward Nic Petan on waivers for the purpose of reassignment. The biggest name here is Rossi, 21, the 9th overall pick at the 2020 draft who has 50 points in 51 games.
• The Washington Capitals have reassigned forwards Aliaksei Protas, Joe Snively, and Beck Malenstyn to the Hershey Bears. Hershey is gearing up for what they hope will be a long Calder Cup playoff run, and both Snively and Protas will likely be counted-on scorers for head coach Todd Nelson. Additionally, the Capitals reassigned prospect Alexander Suzdalev to Hershey from the WHL’s Regina Pats, whose reason recently ended. The 2022 70th overall pick scored 38 goals and 86 points this season playing alongside expected 2023 number-one pick Connor Bedard.
• The Boston Bruins reassigned goaltender Brandon Bussi to the Providence Bruins. Bussi, who was recently named to the AHL’s all-rookie team, backed up Jeremy Swayman yesterday during the team’s win over the Montreal Canadiens. The 24-year-old posted a 21-5-4 record and .925 save percentage this season for Providence, who still have a chance to take the number-one seed in the Atlantic Division.
• The San Jose Sharks reassigned forwards Thomas Bordeleau and Tristen Robins, two of the team’s top forward prospects, back to the San Jose Barracuda. The Barracuda are eliminated from postseason contention and have two games left in their season, each against the Tucson Roadrunners. Both players have had productive years, with Bordeleau scoring 22 goals and 41 points in 64 games and Robins netting 17 goals and 38 points.
• The Vancouver Canucks placed defenseman Christian Wolanin on waivers for the purpose of reassignment to their AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Canucks. Abbotsford is looking to seize the third seed in the Pacific Division from the Colorado Eagles and getting Wolanin back will absolutely help them do that, seeing as he’s scored 55 points in 49 games this season. The 28-year-old veteran of 86 NHL games is under contract for another season and will likely remain Abbotsford’s go-to offensive blueliner.
• The Winnipeg Jets reassigned forward Dominic Toninato to their AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose. Toninato was recalled yesterday and played 11 and a half minutes in the Jets’ loss to the Colorado Avalanche. Toninato has 19 goals and 33 points in 49 games this season and will now be on hand to help the Moose for their Calder Cup playoff run.
• The Arizona Coyotes reassigned five players to the Tucson Roadrunners today: Victor Soderstrom, Michael Kesselring, Milos Kelemen, Jan Jenik, and Ivan Prosvetov. The Roadrunners are gearing up for the Calder Cup playoffs, and now get some important players back into their lineup, including Prosvetov, their starting goalie, and Soderstrom, the 11th overall pick of the 2019 draft.

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