The forwards getting the brief promotion are Colton Dach, Cole Guttman, Frank Nazar, Zach Sanford, Samuel Savoie, and Landon Slaggert.  Meanwhile, the blueliners receiving the extra preseason game are Louis Crevier, Ethan Del Mastro, and Kevin Korchinski.

Nazar and Korchinski are the headliners of the group.  Both are projected to be key players long-term for the Blackhawks and should see regular NHL action at some point this season.  Korchinski spent last season in Chicago as he was ineligible to play in the minors, notching 15 points in 76 games while Nazar was a late-season signing after leaving the University of Michigan.  He scored in his NHL debut, his lone point in three contests.

Among the others, five of the seven recalls saw NHL action last season with only Dach and Savoie waiting for their first regular season opportunity at the top level.  Of that group, Guttman saw the most action with 27 games (notching eight points) while Crevier had three helpers in 24 contests.  Slaggert had four points in 16 appearances, Sanford had four helpers in 18 games after being claimed off waivers, while Del Mastro was held off the scoresheet in two outings.

All of these players had already been cut from training camp and barring any injuries of note in the coming days, are all expected to be returned to the IceHogs, potentially as soon as after tonight’s contest against St. Louis.

Strand turned professional in 2018 after signing his entry-level contract with the Los Angeles Kings after an impressive season with the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds. He spent his first full season with the Ontario Reign of the AHL, scoring seven goals and 18 points in 43 games. Strand spent the next three years with the Kings organization and collected three assists in 21 games at the NHL level with 12 goals and 27 points in 92 AHL contests.

Moving further south in California, Strand signed as a free agent with the Anaheim Ducks heading into the 2022-23 season. He participated in five games with the Ducks that season collecting two goals and eight points in 46 games for the AHL’s San Diego Gulls. Anaheim traded Strand to the Buffalo Sabres organization in exchange for Chase Priskie at that year’s deadline, suiting up in nine games for the Rochester Americans down the stretch.

Outside of his offensive production — Strand carries plenty of value to the IceHogs as a veteran presence and stabilizing defenseman. The team’s president of hockey operations, Mark Bernard, said as much, “He brings experience and energy to the rink each day and is someone that can help carry the coaching staff’s message into the locker room. He will be a great asset this year as we will have a lot of young prospects that he can be a mentor to“.

• Veteran netminder Jussi Olkinuora is on the move as Geneve-Servette of the Swiss league announced that they’ve signed him for the rest of the season. The 33-year-old signed with Detroit for last season but wound up playing exclusively with AHL Grand Rapids before leaving to play in Sweden in early February.
• The Sharks’ farm team has added some depth as the Barracuda have signed winger Kyle Rau for the remainder of the season, per a team release. The 31-year-old has played in 61 career NHL games over parts of six years, most recently in 2021-22 when he suited up in five games with Minnesota.  Rau spent last season with Vancouver’s AHL affiliate in Abbotsford, notching 16 goals and 19 assists in 68 games.
• It didn’t take long for Jackson Cates to find a new place to play as AHL Rockford announced they’ve inked the winger to a PTO. The 26-year-old played in five games with the Flyers last season but had to settle for a training camp tryout, eventually turning into an AHL PTO with the Islanders’ affiliate.  He was released from that deal last week after recording just one goal in 12 games.
• That wasn’t the only move Rockford made today as they also acquired blueliner Austin Strand from AHL Chicago. The 26-year-old has seen NHL action in each of the last three seasons, spanning 26 games in total.  After becoming a Group Six free agent in the summer, he wound up settling for an AHL contract.
• Flames RFA Carl-Johan Lerby has joined IF Bjorkloven in Sweden’s Allsvenskan, per a team release. The blueliner spent the 2020-21 campaign in Calgary’s system, getting into 22 games with AHL Stockton before returning overseas for 2021-22.  Calgary will hold his NHL rights through the 2024-25 season.

D Peter DiLiberatore
F Hunter Drew
F Ryan Dzingel
F Patrick Harper
F Cameron Hebig
D Olli Juolevi
F Micah Miller
F Austin Poganski
D Austin Strand
F Colin Theisen
F Reece Vitelli

Nine of these players are new information. CapFriendly had reported that Dzingel and DiLiberatore had secured PTOs with the Coyotes last week.

The headlining name here is absolutely Juolevi, who’s fallen far off track since the Vancouver Canucks took him fifth overall in the 2016 NHL Draft. He spent last season entirely in the minors as a member of the Anaheim Ducks organization, recording 14 points and a -14 rating in 38 games with the AHL’s San Diego Gulls. Once appearing as a solid prospect after recording 13 points in 18 AHL games during his rookie pro season, injuries completely derailed Juolevi’s development, and if he lands a contract, will find himself with his fifth NHL organization at 25 years old.

The scope of the Coyotes’ PTOs here is not surprising. The team needs to ice a team during their busy preseason schedule, including three games on one day (September 23rd) while the main group is in Australia playing Global Series matches against the Los Angeles Kings. All of these players will likely lace up the skates in one of their North American-based split-squad games against the St. Louis Blues on that day.

A handful of these players are already under AHL contract with Arizona’s affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, for next season: Drew, Hebig, Miller, and Vitelli. They’ve also temporarily contracted the services of Strand, who is under AHL contract with the independently-operating Chicago Wolves this season. Harper is signed to an ECHL deal with the South Carolina Stingrays, the second-tier affiliate of the Washington Capitals. Poganski and Theisen remain without contracts for 2023-24 – the latter did play last season in the Coyotes organization after graduating from Arizona State University.

Arizona is at 47 out of the maximum 50 contracts, meaning NHL contracts aren’t likely in the cards for anyone in this group. These transactions were purely made to get enough bodies around the team for their preseason schedule. However, this could lead to Poganski and Theisen landing AHL deals with Tucson for 2023-24.

Priskie is a 26-year-old right-defenseman who has scored four goals and nine points in 42 games with the Rochester Americans this season. He is in his fourth AHL season after a stellar college career at Quinnipiac and has played four career NHL games.

Strand is also a 26-year-old right-defenseman. He has scored two goals and eight points in 46 games with the San Diego Gulls of the AHL. The 6-foot-3 and 215 pound defender was called up to play five games with the Ducks this season and has played 26 NHL games in his career.

The team dressed seven defensemen that game, with Max Comtois still dealing with a lower-body injury and Pavol Regenda sitting out. Strand’s assignment suggests that one of those things will change for tonight’s home tilt against the New York Rangers. The Ducks will be playing in Anaheim for the next three, meaning they don’t need extra bodies hanging around instead of suiting up with the San Diego Gulls.

Strand, 25, has barely seen the ice whenever he does dress for the Ducks, and has failed to register a point in his five appearances. The minor league veteran has only 26 games of NHL experience under his belt and is an unlikely candidate for more playing time moving forward.

Although, if the Ducks do decide to sell at the deadline, perhaps Strand will be one of the beneficiaries. The defensive trio of John Klingberg, Kevin Shattenkirk, and Dmitry Kulikov are some of the most likely trade chips, meaning someone will have to be patrolling the blue line down the stretch.

While the Hurricanes have been hot, Teravainen has not. The 28-year-old Finn is off to a slow start, having yet to score 14 games into the season. He has logged seven assists, though, which is tied for third on the team. Depth scoring has been a concerning issue for the Hurricanes to start the year (outside of leading point-getter Martin Necas), a trend that will need to quickly reverse in order to account for Teravainen’s absence over at least the next two games. Either Necas or Seth Jarvis could likely get re-elevated to a top-line role in Teravainen’s absence.

• The Anaheim Ducks announced via a team release Friday that forward Derek Grant has been placed on injured reserve, retroactive to November 3. Grant has missed the team’s past three games with an upper-body injury and is still classified as day-to-day. Given he’s already missed more than the week required by the injured reserve placement, this is purely a paper transaction for roster purposes and he is eligible to return at any time. The corresponding roster transaction was an AHL recall, bringing defenseman Austin Strand up from the San Diego Gulls.
• Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar told reporters today, including Jesse Montano of DNVR Sports, that forward Darren Helm had another surgery (reported to be a hip abductor muscle procedure) and is “on the mend.” Helm, 35, has yet to play this season after suffering an abdominal injury during last year’s Stanley Cup run. He has now been moved to LTIR, giving the team roughly $500,000 in cap space to work with as injuries pile up.
• One of the forwards that were serving in a depth role to replace help is also on the injured list. After making his NHL debut last night, 2017 first-round pick Shane Bowers is undergoing an MRI, according to Bednar. Bowers played just 1:46 before leaving the game. After a pair of tough AHL campaigns, Bowers looked like his development may be back on track with six points in 10 games to start the season in AHL Colorado.

Ducks fans will remember De Leo, who played several seasons in their minor league system and even appeared in three NHL games a few years ago. The 26-year-old forward stands just 5’9″ but is an excellent AHL scorer, who put up 56 points in 55 games for the Utica Comets this year.

Kirkland meanwhile broke out in the minors this year, scoring 25 goals to nearly double his career total. The 25-year-old was the 62nd overall pick in 2014 but never has made it to the NHL, instead spending his entire career with the Milwaukee Admirals and Stockton Heat to this point.

Strand, 25, played eight games with the Los Angeles Kings this year, lending his huge frame to the defensive end of the rink. The 6’3″ undrafted defenseman became a Group VI unrestricted free agent this summer because he has only played in 21 games so far but offers a potential injury replacement for the Ducks if needed.

White is the same, as he actually played in 27 games for the Devils this season but still didn’t reach the Group VI cutoff. A fourth-round pick in 2015, he has just 38 games to his name and is likely headed back to the minor leagues.

As we profiled yesterday, Gawdin is perhaps the most interesting of the bunch, given his strong play in the minor leagues, ability to play center, and partial one-way contract. The 25-year-old might get a look with the Ducks at some point in the bottom six, something he rarely was given in Calgary.

Before Kings fans get excited about a potential NHL debut for Turcotte, the fifth-overall pick from 2019, these moves could simply be in order to maximize the relief pool that Doughty’s injury provides. Sending both Clague and Strand to the minor leagues leaves the team with just five defensemen on the roster (compared to 15 forwards) and will likely mean another move comes before tomorrow night’s game.

Still, there could be a good reason to give Turcotte that debut pretty soon. The 20-year-old forward has five points in his first eight games for the Reign this season after racking up 21 in 32 last year. That was in addition to starring for the U.S. at the most recent World Junior Championship, where he helped secure a gold medal with eight points in seven games.

Tkachev meanwhile has already played in four games this season for the Kings, registering two assists. The KHL veteran was signed to a one-year entry-level contract in May, one which does include a European Assignment Clause, which could be activated at some point if the 26-year-old stays in the minor leagues. A star overseas, it doesn’t make much sense for Tkachev to be playing for $80K in the AHL. For at least one day, he’ll earn his NHL salary with the Kings instead.

The two forwards each carry slightly higher cap hits at the NHL level than Clague and Strand, meaning they get the Kings a little closer to the cap ceiling. That’s the goal when you’re putting someone on LTIR during the season, as it gives you the largest relief pool to operate in. Given how little flexibility they had before, this will allow them to try out some of their young prospects whenever necessary.

Oct 10: On the final day to waive players before opening-night rosters are due, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports these 43 players have been placed on waivers:

F Sam Carrick (ANA)
D Jacob Larsson (ANA)
F Axel Jonsson-Fjallby (BUF)
D Eric Gelinas (CAR)
D Maxime Lajoie (CAR)
F Josh Leivo (CAR)
F Stefan Noesen (CAR)
F C.J. Smith (CAR)
D Gabriel Carlsson (CBJ)
D Mikko Lehtonen (CBJ)
F Kevin Stenlund (CBJ)
G Collin Delia (CHI)
G Malcolm Subban (CHI)
D Jacob MacDonald (COL)
D Alexander Petrovic (DAL)
F Riley Barber (DET)
F Taro Hirose (DET)
D William Lagesson (EDM)
F Kyle Turris (EDM)
D Lucas Carlsson (FLA)
G Christopher Gibson (FLA)
D Austin Strand (LAK)
F Austin Wagner (LAK)
F Frederik Gauthier (NJD)
G Connor Ingram (NSH)
F Michael McCarron (NSH)
F Andrew Agozzino (OTT)
D Nick Seeler (PHI)
F Alex Barre-Boulet (TBL)
D Fredrik Claesson (TBL)
D Andrej Sustr (TBL)
F Adam Brooks (TOR)
F Justin Bailey (VAN)
D Madison Bowey (VAN)
F Phillip Di Giuseppe (VAN)
D Travis Hamonic (VAN)
F Sven Baertschi (VGK)
F Patrick Brown (VGK)
F Gage Quinney (VGK)
G Zachary Fucale (WSH)
F Garrett Pilon (WSH)
D Nelson Nogier (WPG)
F Dominic Toninato (WPG)

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Strand, 24, made his NHL debut this season, playing 13 games for the Kings and registering a single point. The undrafted defenseman has worked his way up through the minor leagues but will have to fight for playing time again this season. Waiver-exempt for 2020-21, he was involved in daily transactions between the minor leagues, taxi squad and NHL roster. That opportunity won’t be available this time around, meaning Strand will be at risk to the rest of the league if he fails to make the team out of camp.

The Kings already have five defensemen signed to one-way contracts, plus Michael Anderson, Tobias Bjornfot, and Christian Wolanin fighting for playing time, not to mention the unsigned Kale Clague and Jacob Moverare. There’s plenty of options for the coaching staff to work with as the Kings try to find a mix that can get them back to the playoffs, with Strand serving as valuable depth even if he’s not in the NHL lineup on a regular basis.

With the WHL shutdown for most of the season so far, the Golden Knights’ top pick in 2019 (17th overall) got a rare opportunity to play amongst men in the AHL. He managed to get in five games with the Silver Knights, posting a goal and five points and looking like he’s ready for his next challenge. However, with the WHL starting back up soon, Krebs either had to be on the Golden Knights roster or return to his junior team. The 20-year-old posted impressive numbers with Winnipeg last season, including 12 goals and 60 points in just 38 games before joining the Golden Knights in the bubble for the playoffs last summer even if he didn’t get to appear in an NHL game.

• The Department of Player Safety announced that they have fined Los Angeles Kings defenseman Austin Strand $3,168 for cross-checking forward Conor Garland. The incident occurred at 19:52 of the second period (video here) in which Strand used the shaft of his stick to strike Garland in the face. Strand received a two-minute minor penalty for cross checking. The fine was the maximum amount allowable under the CBA.
• With Sammy Blais on the COVID Protocol list, the St. Louis Blues find themselves down to 11 forwards. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Jim Thomas writes that despite their lack of depth at the forward position all of a sudden, there is no plan to bring back prospect Klim Kostin from Russia. The 2017 first-rounder was loaned for the season to Omsk Avangard of the KHL in September, but the team has indicated that’s where he’ll stay until the KHL season ends. Of course, their regular season ends at the end of this month, but Omsk Avangard is expected to be in the playoffs, lengthening his stay there. While the forward’s numbers aren’t overly impressive (seven goals and 18 points in 41 games), Thomas notes that he has been much more impressive lately with four goals and nine points in his last six games.
• The San Jose Sharks announced they have assigned two of their top picks in the 2020 NHL draft to the WHL. Both Ozzy Wiesblatt and Tristen Robins, who were playing with the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL while junior play has been suspended, will return to their teams. Wiesblatt, the team’s first-round pick (31st overall), played in three games for the Barracuda, scoring one goal and will return to Prince Albert of the WHL. Robins, the team’s second-round pick (56th overall), played in two games with the Barracuda and will return to Saskatoon of the AHL.

• The Canadiens announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled center Jake Evans from the taxi squad in advance of their game tonight against Edmonton. The 24-year-old served as their fourth-line pivot in their opener against Toronto and should be in that role against the Oilers as well.
• Morgan Geekie has been summoned from Carolina’s taxi squad, per a team release. The recall is on an emergency basis and may pertain to Jordan Staal’s placement on the COVID-protocol list on Friday.  Geekie played in two games with the Hurricanes last season, recording three goals and one assist.
• The Avalanche announced (Twitter link) that they have assigned defenseman Conor Timmins to the taxi squad. Meanwhile, blueliner Bowen Byram was recalled from AHL Colorado.  To make room on the taxi squad, forwards Shane Bowers and Logan O’Connor were assigned to the Eagles.  Timmins has played in both games so far this season, logging a little over 15 minutes per night.
• The Maple Leafs have recalled winger Nicholas Robertson from their taxi squad and sent Alexander Barabanov down, the team announced. Robertson played in four games against Columbus in the Qualifying Round last summer but tonight marks his first regular season NHL contest.  Barabanov, meanwhile, has played in both games for Toronto so far but logged just 4:19 on Friday night against Ottawa.
• The Kings have made a series of roster moves, notes Jack A. Harris of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link). With Cal Petersen, Sean Walker, and Kurtis MacDermid all being activated to the roster from the COVID protocol list, defenseman Mark Alt and Tobias Bjornfot along with goalie Jacob Ingham were sent to the taxi squad.  To make room on that group, Los Angeles also assigned defenseman Austin Strand and goalie Matthew Villalta to Ontario (AHL).
• Nashville has recalled forward Mathieu Olivier from the taxi squad, adding some physicality up front. The big forward made his NHL debut last season and saw eight games of action with the Predators while also setting new AHL career highs with the Milwaukee Admirals in his second pro season. The Mississippi native could be a frequent fourth line option for Nashville this season given his size, engery, and propensity for checking.
• Derek Ryan and Oliver Kylington have been activated to the roster of the Calgary Flames, the team announced. Two of the bigger names to hit the waiver wire during training camp, Ryan and Kylington both cleared and were assigned to the taxi squad. However, it didn’t take long for the pair to get back in action for Calgary.

Oct. 12: The Kings have agreed to terms on a deal with one of their restricted free agents as PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that they’ve re-signed defenseman Austin Strand to a one-year, two-way deal.  The contract pays $735K in the NHL and $70K in the minors which means he accepted his qualifying offer.

The 23-year-old signed with Los Angeles as an undrafted free agent back in 2017 and then went to finish off his junior career with WHL Seattle where he flirted with the point per game mark, picking up 25 goals and 39 assists in 69 games.  However, that production hasn’t quite carried over to the professional level.

This past season, Strand played in 41 games with AHL Ontario, picking up eight goals and seven assists in 41 games, numbers that were a bit lower than his rookie campaign.  Nonetheless, he has shown a bit of offensive intrigue which was enough for Los Angeles to tender him his qualifier last week.  Strand will almost certainly start next season with the Reign but could emerge as a recall option if he has a strong start to 2020-21.