The Ducks have made a roster move on their off day. Per the AHL’s transactions log, Anaheim has re-assigned forward Jansen Harkins to AHL San Diego.
Harkins is in his first season with Anaheim after signing a two-year, one-way contract with the Ducks on the second day of free agency back in July. His $787.5K cap hit will come off the books following the demotion.
Harkins was brought up a week and a half ago and played a regular role on the fourth line during that time. Overall, the 27-year-old has played in six games with Anaheim so far this season, picking up an assist along with 15 hits in 10:40 of playing time per night. However, Harkins has been quite productive with the Gulls. So far, he has tallied five goals and 12 assists in 11 games; his 1.55 points-per-game average is second-best among AHL players with five or more appearances.
With Anaheim being off until Monday, it’s possible that this is just a paper move, one that allows them to stall Harkins’ waiver clock for a couple of days. However, it also could be a sign that one of Mason McTavish (upper body) or Brock McGinn (lower body) are on the verge of returning from their respective injuries in which case they wouldn’t need to bring Harkins back right away.