Zach Dean Exits Player Assistance Program, Assigned To AHL
Back in September, Blues prospect Zach Dean entered the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program and has yet to play since then. Today, the team announced that the forward has been cleared from the program and that he has been assigned to AHL Springfield; he’s expected to join the Thunderbirds on Friday.
The 22-year-old was originally a first-round pick by Vegas back in 2021, going 30th overall. However, he never suited up for them as two years later while he was still playing in junior, he was moved to St. Louis in a one-for-one swap for Ivan Barbashev.
This is the final season of Dean’s entry-level deal. In 2023-24, he got into nine games with the Blues but he is still looking for his first point at the top level. Meanwhile, he had nine goals and five assists in 49 games for the Thunderbirds in a relatively quiet rookie campaign.
Things didn’t get any better for Dean last season. Multiple injuries, including a long-term lower-body issue, limited him to just 11 games with Springfield where he managed one goal and three assists. The multiple absences prevented any chance of him getting a recall to St. Louis.
Now cleared to return from the program, Dean will likely need a long runway after being off for so long (he’s played just twice since mid-February). However, a strong showing in the second half of the season could give him another chance with St. Louis, especially if they wind up being a seller before the trade deadline in March.
Rangers Recall Brett Berard, Anton Blidh, Justin Dowling
2:54 p.m.: Laba has been listed as week-to-week with his upper-body injury, per Colin Stephenson of Newsday. He will not be in the lineup for the Winter Classic.
10:21 a.m.: The Rangers have recalled forwards Brett Berard, Anton Blidh, and Justin Dowling from AHL Hartford, Peter Baugh of The Athletic reports. In corresponding moves, the team placed left winger Conor Sheary on long-term injured reserve and returned winger Brennan Othmann to Hartford. The club had an open roster spot entering the day, hence why only two roster spots needed to be opened.
New York’s recalls come after losing Sheary and Noah Laba to injuries in Wednesday’s loss to the Capitals, leaving them shorthanded leading into Friday’s Winter Classic in Miami. Laba remains on the active roster but is unlikely to be available for the outdoor game, according to Baugh.
As such, two of Berard, Blidh, and Dowling are set to feature against the Panthers at LoanDepot Park, home of MLB’s Miami Marlins. Berard is the only one of the group to see NHL time this season, going pointless with a -1 rating through 11 appearances.
The 23-year-old has been knocking on the door of a full-time roster spot for some time, but his waiver-exempt status and lack of offensive success on this year’s call-ups have limited his playing time. He was recently rostered as a healthy scratch during the holiday roster freeze, but hasn’t played an NHL contest since Dec. 15.
Still, the 2020 fifth-round pick got some reps in top-nine minutes last year, notching a 6-4–10 scoring line in 35 games as a rookie. It stands to reason his familiarity with the job will lead him to step in for Sheary as the Blueshirts’ third line left wing.
Even in the minors, it’s been a forgettable season for the 5’9″ lefty. After scoring 25 goals for Hartford as a rookie in 2023-24 and then managing 23 points in just 30 games last year, he’s gone cold with two goals, nine points, and a -9 rating in 20 showings this year.
Blidh, also a winger, seems the likeliest to serve as an extra forward with Laba’s absence stressing the need for a center option in Dowling. The 30-year-old is in his fourth season with the Rangers organization but hasn’t made an NHL appearance since debuting for New York in January 2024.
The 6’1″, 196-lb lefty was a sixth-round pick by Boston in 2013 and appeared in eight consecutive NHL seasons for the Bruins, Avalanche, and Rangers from 2016-24, reaching a career-high nine points in 32 games with the B’s in 2021-22. He’s never served as much more than a bottom-six penalty killing piece, even in the AHL, but is coming off a career-best 19 goals and 36 points in 71 games with Hartford last year. Through 28 showings this season, the Swede has a 3-4–7 scoring line in 28 games.
Dowling would be making his Rangers debut if he plays after signing a two-year, $1.55MM deal as a free agent last summer before ending up on waivers. While he’s the newest to the organization, the 35-year-old has the most NHL experience of the group at 152 games and is used to stepping in as a short-term bottom-six option.
The Calgary native made a career-high 52 appearances with the Devils last season, scoring seven points with a -6 rating while going 48.3% on faceoffs. Whether he or Sam Carrick gets the bump into third-line minutes to replace Laba remains to be seen, although considering Dowling’s produced well with 16 points in 24 AHL games, it’ll likely be him.
As for Sheary, it’s still not clear what caused him to exit yesterday’s game. Nonetheless, he’ll now be out for the Rangers’ next 10 games and 24 days. He will be eligible to return on Jan. 26 against the Bruins.
Signed off a professional tryout in training camp, the two-time Stanley Cup champion hasn’t found much success in third-line duties despite reuniting with former Pittsburgh head coach Mike Sullivan. Despite averaging 14:35 of ice time per game, he’s scored just once in 37 appearances with an abysmal 1.8% shooting clip.
Needing to add so many players left the Rangers within a few thousand dollars of the cap – even with Sheary and Adam Edstrom on LTIR. Blidh and Dowling likely got the call-ups primarily because of their league minimum salary, making Othmann and his slightly more expensive $863.3K cap hit unaffordable for the time being.
After being made available for trade at the beginning of the season, Othmann, the No. 16 overall pick in 2021, has spent most of the year in the minors and has no points and a -3 rating in six NHL appearances. With four goals and 10 points in 19 games for Hartford, he’s likely hurt his trade value more than he’s helped it.
Mammoth Activate Karel Vejmelka From Injured Reserve
The Mammoth announced that goaltender Karel Vejmelka has been activated off injured reserve. Per Stefen Rosner of NHL.com, he’ll be starting this afternoon’s game against the Islanders. Utah assigned Matt Villalta to AHL Tucson in the corresponding move.
Vejmelka only missed the Mammoth’s last two games with an upper-body injury, but given Utah’s light schedule over the holidays, it’s been a week and a half since he’s played. His absence against the Avalanche on Dec. 23 was so last-minute that Utah couldn’t get a goalie call-up to Denver in time, forcing 21-year-old Tier II junior goalie Colten McIntyre onto the bench on an amateur tryout as Vítek Vaněček‘s backup. Vejmelka was retroactively moved to injured reserve prior to Utah’s last game against the Predators on Monday, allowing Villalta to back up Vaněček instead.
After playing well enough to keep Utah in the playoff race through much of last season, Vejmelka has continued to provide stable enough services as a No. 1 behind a stingy Mammoth defense that allows just 25.1 shots per game, second-best in the league. His .894 SV% and 2.70 GAA in 29 starts have been good for a 16-10-2 record and 6.2 goals saved above expected, per MoneyPuck.
The Mammoth had won four out of Vejmelka’s last five starts, so they’ll be anxious to get him back in between the pipes today after dropping their last two decisions with Vaněček in net. It’s been a struggle for the veteran backup since signing with Utah in free agency, logging a .870 SV%, 2.92 GAA and a 2-9-1 record in 11 starts and one relief appearance.
Villalta, 26, is in his third season as the third-string option for Utah/Arizona. The former OHL standout has made three appearances during that time, but none this year. In 15 games for Tucson, he’s got a 9-5-1 record with a .903 SV%, 2.94 GAA, and one shutout.
Oilers Reassign Max Jones
The Oilers announced Thursday they’ve loaned winger Max Jones to AHL Bakersfield. By opening a second roster spot, they’ve given themselves the ability to activate both winger Kasperi Kapanen and defenseman Jake Walman from long-term injured reserve before Saturday’s game against the Flyers if they’re cleared to play.
Jones, 27, spent most of December with the Oilers after clearing waivers and heading to Bakersfield to begin the season. He was recalled in response to injuries to Connor Clattenburg and Jack Roslovic, both of whom have since returned and, in Clattenburg’s case, sent back to Bakersfield.
A first-round pick by the Ducks in 2016, Jones was non-tendered in 2024 and signed a two-year, $2MM contract with the Bruins. Edmonton acquired him from Boston as part of last season’s Trent Frederic trade.
Jones had already lost his grip on a roster spot before the deal, only playing seven games with the B’s after signing the multi-million dollar agreement. He finished out last year on the Oilers’ NHL roster as they dealt with injuries, but only averaged 9:09 of ice time per game in 19 appearances, limited to a goal and an assist each.
The Michigan native’s fortunes haven’t changed this season, again notching two points on an eight-game recall while seeing his deployment come under 10 minutes per night. In Bakersfield, the 6’3″ checker has a 5-2–7 scoring line in 17 games.
At a $1MM cap hit, Jones is a pricey call-up option. With the cap-strapped Oilers nearing full health and no longer being able to use LTIR as a crutch, his opportunities for call-ups will be limited compared to those with six-figure salaries.
Blue Jackets Place Miles Wood On Injured Reserve
The Blue Jackets placed winger Miles Wood on injured reserve Thursday, according to Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers. He’s listed as week-to-week with the apparent left knee injury he sustained last night against the Devils, general manager Don Waddell said.
Wood fell awkwardly on his leg after attempting a check on New Jersey winger Ondřej Palát, struggling to put weight on it as he left the ice. Head coach Dean Evason wasn’t particularly optimistic about Wood’s status during his postgame media availability, but Waddell said Wood’s early evaluation today indicated the “absolute worst was avoided.”
Wood has been found money for the Blue Jackets this season. Included as a salary dump by the Avalanche in the deal that brought them Charlie Coyle last offseason, the 30-year-old has contributed eight goals and 12 points in 32 games for Columbus. At 0.38 points per game, he’s tracking for the third-most efficient offensive season of his 11-year career.
No one will expect the bang-and-crash winger to keep up his career-best 15.7% shooting rate when he returns, but he’d nonetheless been a valuable tertiary scoring piece for a Blue Jackets offense that ranks in the bottom half of the league at 2.92 goals per game. His speed also makes him an effective penalty killer, averaging more than a minute per game shorthanded, but his two-way play at even strength has left something to be desired at a -6 rating and 46.6 CF%.
With Wood out for the foreseeable future, Isac Lundeström on IR, and Sean Monahan dealing with an undisclosed injury, Columbus is without a quarter of its regular forward lineup. With no healthy extras available, they’ll be recalling a player under emergency conditions for Saturday’s game against the Sabres if Monahan can’t go.
Penguins Reassign Ryan Graves
Dec. 31: The Penguins announced they’ve reassigned Graves to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton after he cleared waivers today.
Dec. 30: Graves was formally waived today, per Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.
Dec. 29: After acquiring Yegor Chinakhov earlier today, the Penguins needed to open up a spot on their active roster for him. They’ve determined how to do that, as Seth Rorabaugh of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports (Twitter link) that the team has designated defenseman Ryan Graves as a non-roster player and will place him on waivers on Tuesday when the next waiver period opens.
This will be the second time this season that the 30-year-old will land on the waiver wire. Graves also found himself on waivers during training camp as he was among Pittsburgh’s last group of training camp cuts.
Despite passing through unclaimed and starting the season with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Graves has actually spent more time in Pittsburgh than with them. He got into 10 games at the minor league level to start the year and was productive, picking up a goal and six assists. That earned him a recall in early November and has been up since then, a stint that’s about to come to an end.
Graves has played in 17 games with Pittsburgh this season, albeit in a limited role as he’s barely averaging 15 minutes per night of ice time. In those outings, he has just one point – a goal – along with 31 blocked shots. While offense has never been his calling card, it’s fair to say that Graves isn’t living up to his $4.5MM per season contract, one that runs through the 2028-29 campaign.
Given that price tag, it’s a certainty that Graves will once again pass through unclaimed and be sent back down to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, where he’ll join Mathew Dumba on a high-priced AHL back end. From there, he’ll look to work his way back to Pittsburgh, an outcome that could happen should the Penguins move any of their pending UFA blueliners, a group that includes Connor Clifton, Brett Kulak, and Ryan Shea.
Penguins, Flyers Swap Egor Zamula, Philip Tomasino
The Penguins announced they’ve acquired defenseman Egor Zamula from the Flyers in exchange for winger Philip Tomasino. Both players had previously cleared waivers and will report to their respective new AHL affiliates.
Zamula’s name first surfaced on the trade market at the beginning of the season, initially linked to the Flames. While that deal never came close to fruition, the 25-year-old became an increasingly frequent healthy scratch as the season progressed. After sitting for six straight games in December and being leapfrogged on the depth chart by AHL call-up Ty Murchison, the Flyers placed him on waivers.
Lehigh Valley hadn’t had a ton of action since Zamula’s demotion due to the holiday break, but the 6’3″ lefty did manage two assists and a -3 rating in three games. Last weekend, it was reported that Zamula had changed his representation and was considering terminating his contract to sign with another team at a lower cap hit to boost his chances of returning to the NHL.
Now, Zamula gets the change of scenery he wanted without having to walk away from the remainder of his $1.4MM base salary he’s owed this season. He’d spent his entire pro career in the Philly organization after signing with the Flyers as an undrafted free agent in 2020. Over the past six seasons, he’s scored eight goals and 41 points with a -12 rating in 168 appearances, averaging 15:53 per game.
He’s always carried some intrigue with him because of his size and offensive ceiling – he had a career-high 22 points in 61 games two seasons ago – but doesn’t play a physical brand. Nonetheless, he’s had some above-average possession impacts during his time in Philadelphia and, although he’d fallen out of favor with new head coach Rick Tocchet, his statistical profile suggests there’s still an opportunity for him to stick around as a third-pairing option with power-play deployability.
While Zamula will start in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, he’ll likely be the first name called up if the Pens need a lefty. He should also quickly find his way onto the roster if the Pens ship out Brett Kulak or Ryan Shea, their two pending unrestricted free agents on the left side of their blue line, before the trade deadline.
Pittsburgh has been active in picking up change-of-scenery candidates over the past couple of seasons, including nabbing Yegor Chinakhov from the Blue Jackets just two days ago. Tomasino was a similar acquisition from the Predators last season as well, although that one didn’t end up paying dividends.
The 24th overall pick in 2019, Tomasino arrived in Pittsburgh early last season in exchange for a fourth-round pick. The high-skill winger looked like a natural fit in Pittsburgh’s top nine early on, even getting some reps alongside Evgeni Malkin. After posting just one assist in 11 games with Nashville to begin the year, he logged 11 goals and 23 points in 50 contests to close out the season with the Pens.
However, Pittsburgh’s preference to integrate its own drafted-and-developed talent, plus UFA pickups Justin Brazeau and Anthony Mantha developing some high-end chemistry with Malkin, pushed Tomasino down the depth chart from the drop this season. The 24-year-old only averaged 12:10 per game through nine contests, scoring one assist with a -2 rating, before he ended up on waivers in November. He was eventually reassigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, where he’s clicked at over a point per game pace with a 5-10–15 line and +12 rating in 14 games.
For a Flyers team in need of some wing depth in the wake of Tyson Foerster‘s season-ending arm injury, Tomasino is an intriguing pickup who could even slot into top-six minutes if they opt to return Denver Barkey to the minors after giving him his first taste of NHL hockey. If nothing else, he’s an immediate reinforcement to a Lehigh Valley offense that’s only producing 2.77 goals per game this season.
Both pending restricted free agents, Zamula carries a $1.7MM cap hit while Tomasino counts for $1.75MM. For now, Zamula will only cost $550K against the Pens’ books, and Tomasino will cost $600K for the Flyers while each remains in the minors.
Images courtesy of Eric Canha-Imagn Images (Zamula) and Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images (Tomasino).
Lightning Activate Erik Cernak From LTIR
The Lightning have activated defenseman Erik Černák from long-term injured reserve, Erik Erlendsson of Lightning Insider reports.
Černák will dress on Wednesday against the Ducks for the first time since sustaining a hand injury against the Capitals on Nov. 22. Tampa Bay has ample space in its LTIR pool and opened a roster spot yesterday by placing Scott Sabourin on IR, so no corresponding transaction is necessary.
The importance of the shutdown righty’s return can’t be overstated for a decimated Bolts defense that’s still missing three other regulars in Victor Hedman, Ryan McDonagh, and Emil Martinsen Lilleberg. Hedman will be out for another month with his elbow injury, while McDonagh’s timeline remains fuzzy after re-aggravating the undisclosed injury that already knocked him out of an 18-game stretch earlier in the year.
Before exiting the lineup, Černák had recorded four assists in an even rating in 19 games. His 19:19 average time on ice is tracking for the second-highest of his career, and he leads Bolts defensemen in both blocks (2.26) and hits (2.11) per game.
Černák’s possession impacts this season have been something of a mixed bag. He’s posted the worst shot attempt share (44.2%) of any Bolts skater at even strength, but he’s also received the most difficult deployment, starting 59.8% of his shifts in the defensive zone.
The 28-year-old’s return to action is also crucial ahead of February’s Winter Olympics, where he and the Devils’ Simon Nemec will anchor Slovakia’s defense on the right side. Now in his eighth season, he’s entered the top five in franchise history among defensemen in games played (460) and rating (+93).
Rangers Activate Adam Fox, Reassign Scott Morrow
Dec. 31: The Rangers announced that defenseman Scott Morrow has been assigned to AHL Hartford, indicating Fox will be activated from long-term injured reserve and return to the lineup tonight against the Caps. Morrow had been up since just before Fox exited the lineup and had gotten a few reps as New York’s top power play quarterback in Fox’s absence, but the 23-year-old transition defender remained relatively unproductive.
As the Blueshirts’ most dynamic defense prospect continues to shift between the NHL and AHL, he’s up to three assists and a -1 rating in 16 games in the top flight this season while averaging 15:34 of ice time per game.
Dec. 30: The New York Rangers might soon be able to put a nightmare injury behind them. Star defenseman Adam Fox has been designated as a game-time decision for Wednesday’s match against the Washington Capitals, per Vince Z. Mercogliano of The Athletic. Fox has missed the last 14 games with a shoulder injury sustained on Nov. 29.
Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan called Fox a “very difficult guy to replace,” speaking with Mollie Walker of The New York Post. That sentiment has reflected on the scoreboard for the Rangers, who have a 6-5-3 record and 34-to-39 goal differential since Fox’s injury.
Even after a month out of the lineup, the 2021 Norris Trophy winner still ranks third on the Rangers in scoring with 26 points in 27 games. Fox was tied with Artemi Panarin for the scoring lead at the time of his injury. He was also riding a six-game scoring streak that saw him rack up 10 assists, including one in the game he was injured.
Fox could keep that scoring streak rolling with a strong return from injury. He has been taking practice reps alongside Vladislav Gavrikov, who stepped up as New York’s top defender in December. Gavrikov averaged 25:11 in ice time over the last month, the seventh-most of all defensemen in the NHL. That run included Gavrikov reaching nearly 29 minutes of ice time in New York’s December 20th shootout-win over the Philadelphia Flyers.
Fox should help shoulder that load and could find a chance to ease back into minutes against a Capitals team that New York beat 7-3 last week.
Image courtesy of Charles LeClaire, Imagn Images.
Red Wings Reassign John Leonard
The Red Wings announced Tuesday night that they’ve assigned right winger John Leonard to AHL Grand Rapids. They’re left with an open roster spot.
Leonard’s demotion has little to do with his performance and more to do with roster management. The 27-year-old was recalled on Dec. 14 in the wake of an injury to Patrick Kane. In his first NHL action since March 2024 with the Coyotes, Leonard jumped into Kane’s spot on the second line alongside Andrew Copp and Alex DeBrincat. That line controlled 56.9% of expected goals at 5-on-5 while Leonard scored four points, including two goals, while averaging 12:16 of ice time per game.
However, Leonard’s ice time was slashed after Kane returned to the lineup for Sunday’s win over the Red Wings. He was shifted to fourth-line minutes with youngsters Nate Danielson and Marco Kasper, skating just 7:31.
If Detroit kept Leonard around for much longer, he would need waivers to return to Grand Rapids. He had played seven games and been rostered for 16 days since his recall, meaning he could only play three more games or stay on the roster for 14 days until Detroit would need to risk exposing him to the wire if they attempted to reassign him.
Considering his strong production in his brief NHL look and his electric AHL scoring line this season, the likelihood of him clearing waivers is slim. Grand Rapids, with its 26-1-1 record through 28 games, is on pace for the best regular season in league history. Leonard remains their leading scorer despite spending the last several days on the NHL roster, clicking at nearly a goal per game with a 19-10–29 scoring line in 20 appearances.
At some point, particularly if the Wings decide the struggling Danielson and Kasper could use more development time in the minors, they may recall Leonard and have him stick around for the rest of the season as a valuable top-nine pinch skater. With time on their side, though, they’ll punt that decision until they have to make it.