The Devils assigned center Justin Dowling and defensemen Santeri Hatakka and Daniil Misyul to AHL Utica on Sunday, per a team announcement. New Jersey recalled all three players within the last two weeks, but they’ll now get some additional playing time in the minors with the Devils entering their bye week.
Dowling, 33, is coming off a brief audition in a top-six role. He centered Tyler Toffoli and Dawson Mercer in Saturday’s 6-3 loss to the Lightning, the team’s last outing for 10 days. It was a decidedly failed experiment, as the trio controlled just 20% of expected goals at 5-on-5, per MoneyPuck. Dowling also failed to record a shot and posted a -3 rating in 14:24 of ice time.
The 539-game AHL veteran did score in his only other appearance with the Devils since his recall, a loss to the Hurricanes on Thursday. Since he played less than ten games and has been on the NHL roster for less than 30 days since clearing waivers during training camp, he doesn’t need to pass through them again to return to Utica. There, Dowling has eight goals and 19 points in 30 games, both ranking sixth on the team.
Hatakka, 23, played in three of five games since his recall ten days ago in place of the injured Brendan Smith. The 2019 sixth-round pick of the Sharks had a strong showing, recording an assist and a +5 rating while logging 16:08 per game. His possession metrics don’t point to the sustainability of that goal differential, though, as he recorded a subpar 43.8% Corsi share at even strength that was 6.4% worse than his teammates’ share without him on the ice.
The 23-year-old Misyul did not play in either of the Devils’ two games since he and Dowling were recalled on Thursday. The Belarus-born defender, who was picked three rounds ahead of Hatakka in 2019, returns to Utica without his NHL debut under his belt. He’ll look to continue a decent rookie season in Utica, where he’s recorded 11 points and an even plus-minus rating in 30 games while occupying a shutdown role. Both Hatakka and Misyul are still waiver-exempt.
Dowling could see another recall in a week and a half if Jack Hughes is not ready to return by the end of the All-Star break. After the Devils claimed blue-liner Nick DeSimone off waivers from the Flames last week, though, it’s unlikely both Hatakka and Misyul will be back on the NHL roster when New Jersey returns to game action.