Pastujov has reached those heights on the back of a dazzling 12 points in his last 10 games, pushing him into exciting conversation. Only four other young minor-leaguers have topped a point-per-game average this season – Zachary L’Heureux, Frank Nazar, Luca Del Bel Belluz, and Marco Kasper. All four have since made their NHL debuts, while Pastujov continues to wait for the first call-up of his career. But in the depths of an Anaheim Ducks team that’s scored the fewest goals in the NHL this season, Pastujov’s breakout scoring could quickly demand recognition.

The title of overlooked top-scorer is far from a new one for Pastujov. He’s carried that burden since his youth hockey days in 2018-19 when he rivaled Dylan Duke and Red Savage for the scoring title on Compuware’s U16 team. The trio joined the NTDP for the following two years, where Pastujov again carved out a quick niche as a top-end scorer. He scored 50 points in his U17 NTDP season, tying Chaz Lucius for the team’s scoring title. Lucius faced substantial injuries in the following year, giving Pastujov a clear runway to the role of top scorer. He took that on in stride, netting a daunting 65 points in 41 games – 12 more than Duke, who played in nine more games, in second place. Even Duke, Pastujov’s longtime battery mate, recently made his NHL debut and scored his first career goal.

Pastujov followed his two years at the NTDP with two seasons in the OHL. He led the Guelph Storm in scoring with 76 points in 65 games of the 2021-22 season but lost his title streak when he joined the Sarnia Sting via a mid-season trade in 2022-23 – netting 98 points in 60 games, good for fourth in the league but second on the Sting.

That was Pastujov’s final year of junior hockey before joining the AHL last year – and he’s stayed red-hot as a pro. He scored a commendable 23 points in 46 games as an undersized AHL rookie. Perhaps looking to inspire those numbers a bit more, Anaheim opted to start Pastujov in the ECHL this season – but he quickly broke out of the league after netting 16 points in the first 12 games of the year.

He’s since been a force in the AHL and seems to be gaining steam with every point he adds. Pastujov is a slick, aggressive forward with a nifty shot and strong downhill drive. Those aspects of energy and determination are central to the Ducks’ identity, even if Pastujov’s lack of physicality is notably off-brand.

Still, he’s shown the ability to score at every single level and responded well to a challenging start to the year. The wind is behind Pastujov’s sails, and if Anaheim can’t find their scoring when they return from the 4 Nations Face-Off break, turning towards their perennial top-scoring prospect could be a golden chance to mend their offense while still looking towards the future.

Anaheim Ducks

F Ethan Procyszyn (North Bay Battalion)
F Beckett Sennecke (Oshawa Generals)
D Konnor Smith (Brampton Steelheads)
F Carey Terrance (Erie Otters)

Buffalo Sabres

G Ryerson Leenders (Brantford Bulldogs)
F Ethan Miedema (Kingston Frontenacs)

Calgary Flames

F Jacob Battaglia (Kingston Frontenacs)
D Henry Mews (Sudbury Wolves)
F Luke Misa (Brampton Steelheads)
D Zayne Parekh (Saginaw Spirit)

Chicago Blackhawks

D Ty Henry (Erie Otters)
F Nick Lardis (Brantford Bulldogs)
F Martin Misiak (Erie Otters)
F Alex Pharand (Sudbury Wolves)
F Jack Pridham (Kitchener Rangers)
F A.J. Spellacy (Windsor Spitfires)
F Marek Vanacker (Brantford Bulldogs)

Colorado Avalanche

F Christian Humphreys (Kitchener Rangers)
F Calum Ritchie (Oshawa Generals)

Columbus Blue Jackets

G Nolan Lalonde (Soo Greyhounds)
D Luca Marelli (Oshawa Generals)
F Luca Pinelli (Ottawa 67’s)

Dallas Stars

D Tristan Bertucci (Barrie Colts)
F Brad Gardiner (Barrie Colts)
F Emil Hemming (Barrie Colts)
F Angus MacDonell (Brampton Steelheads)

Detroit Red Wings

G Landon Miller (Soo Greyhounds)

Edmonton Oilers

D Beau Akey (Barrie Colts)
F Connor Clattenburg (Flint Firebirds)
G Nathaniel Day (Flint Firebirds)
F William Nicholl (London Knights)
F Sam O’Reilly (London Knights)
F Brady Stonehouse (Peterborough Petes)
F Dalyn Wakely (Barrie Colts)

Los Angeles Kings

G Carter George (Owen Sound Attack)
F Liam Greentree (Windsor Spitfires)
D Matthew Mania (Flint Firebirds)
D Jared Woolley (London Knights)

Minnesota Wild

D Stevie Leskovar (Brampton Steelheads)

Montreal Canadiens

D Owen Protz (Brantford Bulldogs)

Nashville Predators

D Andrew Gibson (Oshawa Generals)
F Joey Willis (Kingston Frontenacs)

New Jersey Devils

F Cole Brown (Brantford Bulldogs)

New York Islanders

F Jesse Nurmi (London Knights)

New York Rangers

F Nathan Aspinall (Flint Firebirds)

Ottawa Senators

D Matthew Andonovski (Kitchener Rangers)
D Gabriel Eliasson (Barrie Colts)
F Lucas Ellinas (Kitchener Rangers)
D Tomas Hamara (Brantford Bulldogs)
F Blake Montgomery (London Knights)

Philadelphia Flyers

F Denver Barkey (London Knights)
D Oliver Bonk (London Knights)
F Jett Luchanko (Guelph Storm)
F Noah Powell (Oshawa Generals)

Pittsburgh Penguins

F Cooper Foster (Ottawa 67’s)
D Finn Harding (Brampton Steelheads)
D Emil Pieniniemi (Kingston Frontenacs)

San Jose Sharks

F Igor Chernyshov (Saginaw Spirit)
D Sam Dickinson (London Knights)
F Kasper Halttunen (London Knights)
F Quentin Musty (Sudbury Wolves)

Seattle Kraken

D Jakub Fibigr (Brampton Steelheads)
F Andrei Loshko (Niagara IceDogs)
F Carson Rehkopf (Brampton Steelheads)
F Nathan Villeneuve (Sudbury Wolves)

St. Louis Blues

D Quinton Burns (Kingston Frontenacs)
D Lukas Fischer (Sarnia Sting)
D Adam Jiříček (Brantford Bulldogs)
D Matthew Mayich (Ottawa 67’s)

Tampa Bay Lightning

F Ethan Hay (Kingston Frontenacs)
F Kaden Pitre (Flint Firebirds)

Toronto Maple Leafs

F Easton Cowan (London Knights)
D Ben Danford (Oshawa Generals)
F Sam McCue (Flint Firebirds)

Utah Hockey Club

F Owen Allard (Soo Greyhounds)
F Cole Beaudoin (Barrie Colts)
F Noel Nordh (Soo Greyhounds)

Vancouver Canucks

F Vilmer Alriksson (Brampton Steelheads)
F Riley Patterson (Barrie Colts)
F Anthony Romani (Barrie Colts)

Vegas Golden Knights

F Trent Swick (Kitchener Rangers)
F Tuomas Uronen (Kingston Frontenacs)

Washington Capitals

D Cam Allen (London Knights)
F Ilya Protas (Windsor Spitfires)
F Patrick Thomas (Brantford Bulldogs)

Winnipeg Jets

F Colby Barlow (Oshawa Generals)
F Kevin He (Niagara IceDogs)
F Jacob Julien (London Knights)
F Kieron Walton (Sudbury Wolves)

There weren’t many surprises in her article as Shefte noted Brandon Tanev, Yanni Gourde, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Jaden Schwartz, and Andre Burakovsky as trade pieces for Seattle. All five players have been mentioned in trade rumors throughout the season largely due to the Kraken’s disappointing record.

Shefte did note forward Eeli Tolvanen and defenseman Jamie Oleksiak, who hadn’t previously been mentioned in trade rumors before. In all fairness, it doesn’t seem likely that Seattle will move either player, given Tolvanen quickly re-upped on a two-year contract with the team last offseason and Oleksiak has a 16-team no-trade clause built into his contract.

Other Pacific notes:

• Semi-regular San Jose Sharks’ forward Thomas Bordeleau is facing supplemental discipline at the AHL level.  The AHL’s Player Safety Committee announced that Bordeleau is suspended for one game for cross-checking Colorado Eagles’ forward Chris Wagner on Wednesday. Due to the suspension, he’ll miss the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda game tonight.
• In a scary incident in last night’s game between the OHL’s Erie Otters and Owen Sound Attack, Otters captain and Anaheim Ducks’ prospect Carey Terrance was taken to the hospital due to an injury. Approximately 12 hours later, the Otters announced that Terrance had been discharged from the hospital and would continue with the team on their current road trip.

No official announcement has been made as of yet, but one is expected on Monday after the OHL Board approves the sale (as per TSN’s Darren Dreger). A press conference is expected to happen sometime in the middle of next week.

Once it is official, it raises a lot of questions about whether the team will stay in the city of Brantford, the Bulldogs home for the past two seasons. Brantford has information listed on the city’s website that outlines plans to build a $140MM sports and entertainment center that would presumably house the Bulldogs. The website mentions that construction could start this year, with 2027 as the target date to open up a new facility. However, with a new ownership group coming in, those plans could change. Hyman’s father, Stuart Hyman, is a developer in the Toronto area and is expected to be part of the ownership group along with his son.

More from the Pacific:

• Still with the Oilers, prospect Brady Stonehouse is on the move in the OHL as Peterborough announced that they’ve acquired the winger from Ottawa. Edmonton signed the 20-year-old as an undrafted free agent back in 2023 and he is burning the first year of his entry-level deal at the junior level.  In 18 games with the 67’s prior to the swap, Stonehouse had five goals and five assists.
• The Flames are expected to have more information on how long they’ll be without forward Connor Zary on Friday, relays Sportsnet’s Eric Francis (Twitter link). The 23-year-old suffered what looked to be a serious knee injury against Anaheim on Tuesday and the belief is that he may be facing an extended absence.  After spending some time in the minors last season, Zary has been a full-timer with Calgary this season and had a solid first half before the injury, picking up 10 goals and 22 assists in his first 40 games.
• Sharks winger Nikolai Kovalenko will not play tomorrow against Utah due to an upper-body injury, notes Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now (Twitter link). The injury was sustained on Tuesday versus Vegas.  Kovalenko has fared relatively well since being acquired last month from Colorado, notching a goal and five assists in a dozen games with San Jose after tallying just eight points in 28 games with the Avs.  He’s listed as out day-to-day.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

• The Wild announced (Twitter link) that they have placed winger Jakub Lauko on LTIR retroactive to December 14th. The move comes just one day after they exited LTIR with the activation of Jacob Middleton.  PuckPedia notes (Twitter link) that today’s recall of David Jiricek allowed them to get his bonuses into their LTIR pool which could be useful if Lauko’s stint on LTIR is a lengthy one.  The bonuses would stay in their pool even if Jiricek is subsequently reassigned to the minors again.  Lauko has four points and 48 hits in 24 games while averaging ten minutes a night of playing time.
• With the trade deadlines fast approaching in the CHL, there have been some notable moves made in recent days. The latest of those saw WHL Spokane acquire Capitals prospect Andrew Cristall, per a team release in exchange for a prospect and five draft picks including a pair of first-round selections.  The 19-year-old was rated by some as a first-round pick in 2023 although he ultimately slipped to 40th overall.  After putting up an impressive 111 points last season, Cristall is on pace to beat that this year with 26 goals and 34 assists in just 28 outings.  Already signed to his entry-level deal, Cristall will be playing professionally next season.
• Maple Leafs prospect Sam McCue is on the move in the OHL as Flint announced that they’ve acquired the winger from Owen Sound. The 19-year-old was a seventh-round pick last year, going 216th overall in his second year of eligibility and will be eligible to play in the minors next season.  McCue has 18 goals and 13 assists in 35 games so far this season.

Most notably, Tampa Bay Lightning winger Jake Guentzel returned to the team’s practices in a no-contact jersey on Tuesday, per NHL.com’s Eduardo A Encina. It was his first time skating since suffering an upper-body injury in the team’s Saturday game. He was designated as day-to-day, and missed his first game of the season on Sunday. Tampa Bay have until Thursday to prepare for a three-game slate this weekend. Guentzel’s return to the ice could be an indication that the Bolts will be getting another star scorer to support the effort.

Guentzel has been fantastic in his first season in Tampa Bay. He’s recorded 20 goals and 37 points through 33 games this season. That equals out to a 1.12 points-per-game scoring pace, which stands as the highest of Guentzel’s nine-year career and puts him on pace for 50 goals and 91 points across 81 games. He’ll need to return soon to uphold those numbers, and continue contributing to a Lightning top-six with three players outscoring him.

Across the Eastern Division, the New York Islanders have lost forward Simon Holmström to an upper-body injury. He has been designated as day-to-day, per a team announcement, and missed his first game of the season on Tuesday. Holmstrom has been a rare bright spot in the Islanders lineup, posting nine goals and 22 points across 37 games so far. He’s nearly past his career-high of 25 points set in 75 games last season, and has slowly climbed the Islanders lineup as a result. The Islanders scored just one goal in his absence on Tuesday, pulling their record to 4-6-0 in their last 10 games. All four of those wins required four-or-more goals, meaning New York now faces the challenge of maintaining their offense without one of their top scorers.

Traveling to the other coast – San Jose Sharks prospect Igor Chernyshov has shared that he hopes to return to game action in January, per Curtis Pashelka of Mercury News. Chernyshov – the fisrt pick of the second round in last year’s draft – has been skating with Sharks staff to support his recovery. He was a top prospect in last year’s class, with many even dubbing him a first-round talent. But a shoulder surgery in August has so far held him out of all 2024-25 action. He is expected to head to the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit when he returns to full health.

Finally, Vancouver Canucks winger Arshdeep Bains has changed agents, now represented by Wasserman’s Darren Hermiston per PuckPedia. Bains is in the final year of his entry-level contract. He began the year in the minor leagues, but was the clear top option on Vancouver’s call-up chart. He’s already been recalled seven times this season, resulting in Bains stepping into 11 NHL games. Unfortunately, he hasn’t done much to make the call-ups stick – with just one assist and a -4. He’s been much more active in the minors, recording 11 points, 20 penalty minutes, and a -5 in 12 games. Bains ranked second on the Abbotsford Canucks in scoring last season with 55 points in 59 games. His change of representation months before a new deal could be a step towards fighting for a hardier chance at the top flight.

• The Kraken announced (Twitter link) that they have re-assigned winger Ryan Winterton to AHL Coachella Valley. The 21-year-old has found himself on the transactions log quite a few times already this season but has gotten into eight games with Seattle, picking up an assist while logging 10:22 per night of playing time.  Winterton has been quite productive with the Firebirds though, tallying 15 points in 16 outings with them.
• The Hurricanes have returned winger Jackson Blake, goaltender Dustin Tokarski, and defenseman Riley Stillman to AHL Chicago, per the AHL’s transactions log. Carolina has made these moves all season long to bank a bit of cap space.  Even with the roster freeze, emergency recalls are still permitted for a few more days so expect them to continue this for even after Thursday.
• Capitals prospect Cam Allen is on the move in the OHL. London announced that they’ve acquired the blueliner from Guelph in exchange for defenseman Noah Jenken and seven draft picks.  Allen was once rated as a first-round pick but slid in his draft year (2023) to the fifth round, going 136th overall.  Washington has already signed the 19-year-old who had 25 points in 27 games prior to the swap.

As for why Lemieux chose to go overseas, it does appear that he was chasing a new opportunity. Derek O’Brien of The Hockey News writes that Lemieux has signed for the rest of this season as well as two additional years.

In other morning notes:

• Hockey Canada tweeted that Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Easton Cowan will attend the team’s selection camp but won’t participate for precautionary reasons. The news caps off an eventful, albeit difficult couple of days for the 19-year-old. Cowan recorded a point for the 56th consecutive game on Friday, unofficially setting an OHL record, but was injured a short time later by an open-ice hit. In a corresponding move, Team Canada added Anaheim Ducks prospect Beckett Sennecke to their selection camp. The 2024 third-overall pick has 21 goals and 23 assists in 26 OHL games this season and has 14 points over his last four games.
• It’s being reported that the Anaheim Ducks were hoping to include defenseman Cam Fowler in the trade to acquire Jacob Trouba (as per Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet). Fowler has been looking for a trade for quite some time, but the Rangers wanted to keep flexibility for this year and next and wouldn’t have realized much savings if they were to add Fowler’s $6.5MM cap hit. Friedman notes that the Ducks and Fowler are looking for a solution to their situation that will help both the team and the long-time Ducks veteran. The 33-year-old Fowler has been a perennial 40-point player for most of his career but has struggled this season with just three assists in 14 games.

Other prospect news around the NHL:

• Ducks prospect Vojtech Port is on the move as WHL Lethbridge has acquired him from Moose Jaw, per a team release. The 19-year-old blueliner was drafted by Anaheim in the sixth round in 2023.  Port had 15 points in 42 games last season between Edmonton and Moose Jaw but is off to a quiet start this season with just three assists in 19 games so far.  The Ducks only hold his rights until June 1st, 2025, so Port will need to be an impactful piece for his new team if he wants to earn an entry-level contract in the coming months.
• Blackhawks prospect Jack Pridham is changing teams and leagues as OHL Kitchener announced that they’ve signed the forward for the remainder of the season. Chicago drafted the 18-year-old in the third round (92nd overall) back in June and he started the season with BCHL West Kelowna (collecting 10 points in 12 games) while waiting to go to Boston University next year.  However, now that CHL players can play in the NCAA starting next season, Pridham will play the rest of the year with Kitchener and then likely make the jump to college hockey as planned for 2025-26.

However, Kurt Leavins of the Edmonton Journal posits that the time isn’t right for the Oilers to be making a move like that.  While it’s clear their need is to upgrade on the back end, he suggests that they’d be best served by waiting until later in the year when they ideally would have more cap space to play with.  At the same time, more teams should be established as sellers which should give them more options to choose from compared to if they tried to make a trade now.

Other quick notes around the league:

• Top Carolina Hurricanes prospect Gleb Trikozov had his KHL rights traded from Omsk to Spartak on Saturday, per Spartak’s Instagram page. Forward Matvei Zaseda was dealt the other way. This move means little as things stand, with Trikozov currently a member of the AHL’s Chicago Wolves. But he’s gone without any scoring through his first six AHL games – potentially enough of a spark to return him to a tremendously productive career in Russia. Trikozov recorded 31 points in 64 games in the VHL, Russia’s second-tier pro league, over the last two seasons – and arguably earned a hardier chance at KHL minutes. Spartak could stand to offer that increased role as they look to add the gut punch needed to get over SKA and Lokomotiv in the KHL’s Western Conference. For their part, the underachieving Omsk receives a seasoned pro in Zaseda – who’s totaled 36 points in 105 KHL games and 75 points in 120 VHL games at the age of 25.
• Winnipeg Jets head coach Scott Arniel shared that star winger Kyle Connor is OK after getting pulled from Sunday’s game against Tampa Bay by concussion spotters, per Murat Ates of The Athletic. Connor took a hit from behind by Tampa’s Nikita Kucherov that pushed his head directly into Erik Cernak. He labored briefly but didn’t seem severely injured. That’s been confirmed now, and Connor will get to continue his role as the leading scorer (18 points in 11 games) on one of the NHL’s hottest teams.
• Senators prospect Blake Montgomery has left USHL Lincoln and will instead join OHL London, Jeff Marek reports. Montgomery was a fourth-round pick back in June, going 117th overall.  He was off to a good start with Lincoln with ten points in his first ten games after putting up 43 points in 58 games last season.

Ostapchuk on the other hand had an assist in last night’s 8-1 win, in what was his first NHL game of the season. It was a special moment for the 21-year-old as the assist represented his first NHL point. Ostapchuk dressed in seven games last season for Ottawa, going pointless.

The move is likely to be a paper transaction as the Senators don’t play again until Friday against the New York Rangers and could very well recall either player in the next few days.

In other evening notes:

• San Jose Sharks forward prospect Quentin Musty has returned to the Sudbury Wolves of the Ontario Hockey League and is expected to play this weekend (as per Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News). San Jose re-assigned Musty back to the OHL in late September, but a week later, it was reported that the 2023 first-round pick (26th overall) had requested a trade. That same day, Sudbury released a statement talking about Musty’s trade request, saying that they would field trade offers but would also welcome Musty back if he changed his mind. Musty’s return will be a big boost for the Wolves, who have started the OHL season with a 7-5 record.
• Philadelphia Flyers prospect Massimo Rizzo has reportedly suffered an appendicitis that required him to have surgery a few weeks ago to get his appendix removed (as per Flyers reporter Bill Meltzer). The early reports indicate that Rizzo will require a six to eight-week timeline to recover from the appendectomy. The 23-year-old is slated to play in the AHL for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms but has yet to dress in a game this season. Rizzo was originally drafted in the seventh round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft by the Carolina Hurricanes but was dealt to the Flyers in August 2023, along with a 2025 fifth-round pick in exchange for forward David Kase.

The decision to send Jett back is something we strongly believe is the right path for him and his development. His work-ethic, preparedness and play during training camp and preseason was something we were extremely impressed with and felt he earned the right to make our roster and start the season with us. Ultimately, we feel it is more valuable for Jett to be put in the best possible position to prepare himself for an NHL career, and right now that is with his team in Guelph.

The 18-year-old had a strong showing with the Storm last season, notching 20 goals and 54 assists in 68 regular season games along with three assists in four playoff appearances.  That had him rated by many outlets as a first-round pick outside of the lottery.  But the Flyers felt differently about his upside, ultimately selecting him 13th overall, signing him to an entry-level contract less than two weeks later.

Luchanko got into four preseason games with Philadelphia, picking up two assists and playing his way onto the opening roster.  He suited up in four regular season contests as well – making him the youngest player in the league – but was held off the scoresheet while playing just over 14 minutes per game on average.  However, after being scratched for three of their seven games, it seemed likely that he’d eventually return to junior where he can play significant minutes in all situations and push for a spot at the World Juniors in December.

Since Luchanko won’t get into ten or more NHL contests this season, his contract won’t officially begin this season after all and he will still have three years remaining on it with a slightly lower cap hit heading into 2025-26.  The Flyers now have one vacancy on their active roster and can either promote someone from AHL Lehigh Valley to fill it or operate with 22 players for the time being.

Elsewhere in the Pacific Division:

• Kings center Phillip Danault has changed agents. Octagon’s Allan Walsh announced (Twitter link) that he is now representing the 31-year-old who was previously repped by Newport’s Don Meehan.  Walsh won’t be having to worry about contract talks for a while, however, as Danault is signed through the 2026-27 season at a $5.5MM AAV.  He’s off to a bit of a quiet start offensively this season with just three assists through his first eight games.  However, he has recorded at least 47 points in five of the last six seasons.
• Late last month, the Sharks assigned prospect Quentin Musty back to OHL Sudbury but he has yet to play since then. It’s not because of an injury, however, but rather a trade request.  GM Mike Grier expressed some frustration about the situation to Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News (subscription link), indicating that he has been in contact with Musty’s agent to emphasize the need to find a suitable trade sooner rather than later.  San Jose selected Musty with the 26th pick in 2023 and he averaged nearly two points per game last season with the Wolves, notching 43 goals and 59 assists in 53 games.  Having him out this long certainly isn’t ideal from a development standpoint.

Hartman scored two goals on 12 shots and six hits in Minnesota’s first four games. He’s one of five Wild forwards with multiple goals, though Mats Zuccarello’s three scores lead the way. Hartman has played the least of any of Minnesota’s multi-goal scorers, averaging just 15:21 in ice time while serving as the team’s third-line center. His role has declined every season since he served as the team’s top center and scored a career-high 65 points in the 2021-22 campaign. Joel Eriksson Ek and Marco Rossi have taken complete hold of the top six in Hartman’s place. Hartman has stayed productive in the declining role, netting 21 goals and 45 points in 74 games last season. He’ll aim to return to the third line and spot starts on the power play when Minnesota takes on Tampa Bay on Thursday.

Other notes from around the league:

• The Canucks also shared that forward Dakota Joshua is a couple of weeks away from a return after undergoing surgery to remove a cancerous lump this summer, per Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff. Joshua earned a hardy lineup role toward the end of Vancouver’s 2023-24 season, ending the year with 18 goals and 32 points in 63 regular season games and adding eight points in 13 playoff games. He’ll quickly slot back into the lineup when he’s healthy, likely stepping over Nils Aman, Teddy Blueger, and Kiefer Sherwood for minutes in the bottom six.
• The Utah Hockey Club has returned 2023 draft pick Noel Nordh to the OHL’s Soo Greyhounds after a two-game conditioning stint with the AHL’s Tuscon Roadrunners. Nordh, a third-round draft pick, failed to score in his first two games in North American pros. He’ll now begin a career in Canadian juniors after earning professional ice time in Sweden with resilient U20 performances. His Swedish career was capped off with a HockeyAllsvenskan championship with Brynas last season. Nordh contributed 15 points in 50 games.