Sharks Activate Alex Nedeljkovic, Reassign Jakub Skarek
Nov. 14, 12:03 p.m.: The Sharks announced that Nedeljkovic has re-joined the team and has thus been added to the active roster. Skarek was reassigned to the AHL after backing up Askarov in last night’s loss.
Nov. 13, 12:05 p.m.: The Sharks officially announced Skarek’s recall and moved Nedeljkovic to the non-roster list.
Nov. 13, 11:06 a.m.: The Sharks are expected to recall goaltender Jakub Skarek from AHL San Jose today, Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now reports. Skarek is expected to back up Yaroslav Askarov tonight against the Flames in place of Alex Nedeljkovic, who left the club’s road trip to deal with a personal matter, head coach Ryan Warsofsky told the beat following Tuesday’s overtime win over the Wild (via Peng). Nedeljkovic will presumably land on the non-roster list as the corresponding transaction for Skarek’s recall.
Skarek, fresh off his 26th birthday, had an interesting summer. He became a Group VI unrestricted free agent after spending the first six years of his North American professional career in the Islanders organization. He initially returned to Europe, inking a one-year deal with a second-year option with HIFK in Finland in May. Just over two months later, he terminated that deal and signed a one-year, league-minimum contract with the Sharks to serve as their third-string netminder.
Despite his boatloads of professional experience stateside, Skarek only has two NHL appearances to his name. Both came with the Isles last season. In one start and one relief appearance in February, the 2018 third-round pick conceded five goals on 34 shots for a .872 SV% and 3.94 GAA.
Skarek’s minor-league track record leaves much to be desired. He was consistently among the AHL’s worst starters during his time in Bridgeport. He hasn’t had a .900 SV% at any level since his post-draft season in Finland, and so far, that trend looks to continue. Through six games for San Jose’s affiliate, Skarek has a 4-2-0 record but has paired that with a .875 SV% and 3.63 GAA. He’s now technically the No. 4 option on San Jose’s depth chart and has been usurped as the Barracuda’s starter by second-year pro Gabriel Carriere, who has a .901 SV% in eight games.
The Sharks don’t want to interrupt the 25-year-old Carriere’s play, so it’ll be Skarek getting the call. Nedeljkovic isn’t expected to miss more than a couple of games at most, Warsofsky said, so it would be surprising to see Skarek get a start without any upcoming back-to-backs.
Maple Leafs Activate Joseph Woll, Recall Easton Cowan
The Maple Leafs announced they’ve activated goaltender Joseph Woll from long-term injured reserve and also recalled top prospect Easton Cowan from AHL Toronto. In a pair of corresponding transactions, they returned goaltender Artur Akhtyamov to the AHL and placed captain Auston Matthews on injured reserve. Toronto wasn’t dipping into its LTIR pool, so creating cap space wasn’t an issue regarding Woll’s activation.
While Woll has been activated from LTIR, they haven’t yet specified whether he’s been recalled from the conditioning stint that has had him suiting up in the minors for the last week. If they do summon him, he could be in line for his first start of the season tomorrow against the Blackhawks. The 27-year-old netminder departed the team in the first few days of training camp for personal reasons and was away for over a month before beginning the return-to-play process in late October. He got in a few practices before being assigned to the Marlies on a conditioning stint to get into game action. In his first minor-league showing in two years, he logged a .885 SV% and 3.72 GAA with a 0-1-1 record in two starts.
The Leafs hope Woll can provide better numbers in his return than what he showed in that small AHL sample. Toronto’s crease has been a mess after churning out some of the league’s best goaltending in 2024-25. Starter Anthony Stolarz, who was overworked in Woll’s absence and is now day-to-day with an upper-body injury, has struggled to the tune of an .884 SV% and has allowed 5.3 goals above expected in 13 starts, per MoneyPuck. The team claimed Cayden Primeau off waivers from the Hurricanes at the beginning of the season to serve as Stolarz’s backup in Woll’s absence, but he faltered with an. 838 SV% and allowed a whopping 6.8 goals above expected in just three starts before being waived again and re-claimed by Carolina.
Third-stringer Dennis Hildeby has been forced into action in the past several days with Primeau’s loss and Stolarz’s injury, and he’s been the best of the bunch. Despite a 0-2-1 record in two starts and two relief appearances, he’s logged a highly respectable .904 SV% behind a lapsing defense and has stopped 1.6 goals above expected.
Until Stolarz’s short-term absence comes to an end, it looks to be Hildeby’s and Woll’s crease. While injuries and other long-term absences have been a consistent hindering factor for the once-promising prospect, Woll has performed at a legitimate starter’s level when given the runway. He started a career-high 41 games last year in what was his second season as a full-time NHLer, rattling off a 27-14-1 record with a .909 SV% and 2.73 GAA. He wasn’t on the level of Stolarz’s league-leading .926 SV%, but still ranked 11th in the NHL with 16.8 goals saved above expected.
Getting top-15 play out of Woll again won’t be a permanent fix to the Leafs’ league-worst 3.83 goals against per game, but it should stop the bleeding enough to give them a chance to get themselves back into the playoff conversation. Now on a four-game winless streak, the reigning Atlantic Division champions are second-last in the division with an 8-8-2 record.
As for Akhtyamov, he’d been recalled to serve as Hildeby’s backup for last night’s overtime loss to the Kings. He promptly returns to the minors, where he has a .894 SV% in six games, in place of Woll.
Goaltending isn’t the only position the Leafs are shaking up today, though. Cowan, the team’s first-round pick in 2023, will be getting his second call-up of the season after essentially spending the first month of the campaign on the active roster. The 20-year-old winger got reps in top-line minutes with Matthew Knies and Auston Matthews, but also spent a good chunk of time on the third line with Dakota Joshua and Nicolas Roy. With Matthews out for the time being, it’s unclear where he’ll slot in this time around.
Cowan is in his first pro season after starring in back-to-back OHL title runs for the London Knights. He averaged 12:33 of ice time through his first 10 NHL games and was noticeably involved, rattling off 15 shots on goal on 30 attempts. That only resulted in one goal and three assists, but more production will inevitably come with that kind of chance generation. He’s also managed an assist in two AHL games since being reassigned earlier in the month.
Matthews’ IR placement is simply a formality for roster juggling purposes. He’s already been ruled day-to-day with a lower-body issue and was expected to miss about a week after leaving Tuesday’s loss to the Bruins. The seven-day minimum doesn’t affect his return timeline in a meaningful way, aside from being officially ruled out for another two games. He could return next Thursday against the Blue Jackets.
Golden Knights’ William Karlsson Out Week-To-Week
According to a team announcement, the Vegas Golden Knights are expected to be without forward William Karlsson for the next few weeks due to a lower-body injury. Karlsson missed his first game of the year on Monday against the Florida Panthers due to the injury.
It’s an unfortunate circumstance for Karlsson and the Golden Knights, as he was quietly placed on the team’s injured reserve yesterday morning. Although he’s not a direct replacement, Vegas has recalled Braeden Bowman from the AHL’s Henderson Silver Knights after scoring seven goals and 12 points through his first 12 games to start the season.
Once again, the Golden Knights’ regular-season success is being heavily impacted by injury concerns. Alongside Karlsson, the team was already without captain Mark Stone and starting netminder Adin Hill for the foreseeable future. They’re currently 7-4-4 and two points back of the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference standings.
Unfortunately, this is all too familiar for Karlsson. One of the four remaining “Misfits”, Karlsson lost 29 games to a lower-body injury last year, finishing with nine goals and 29 points. He had gotten off to a relatively solid start to the current season, scoring four goals and seven points in 14 games while averaging 15:09 of ice time per game.
It’s a tricky situation for the cap-strapped Golden Knights. According to the new LTIR rules, Vegas is only able to shed Alex Pietrangelo’s $8.8MM salary this season since he won’t feature during the year or the postseason. Unfortunately, even with Stone on LTIR and Karlsson now on the IR, the Golden Knights only have a little over $450K in cap space, leaving them with very few options to fill in their injury holes.
Dallas Stars Place Adam Erne On Injured Reserve
The Dallas Stars will be without one of their depth forwards for at least the next little while. The Stars announced they’ve placed Adam Erne on the injured reserve with a lower-body injury, retroactive to November 11th.
Although he’s far from a high-profile talent, Erne was one of the most surprising signings from the summer. The 2024-25 campaign was the first time in nine years that Erne hadn’t registered an NHL contest.
He signed a professional tryout agreement with the New York Rangers in the early portion of the preseason heading into the 2024-25 season. Unfortunately, Erne wasn’t able to capitalize on the tryout and instead had to settle for a PTO with the Rangers’ AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack. After registering one assist in 10 games for the Wolf Pack, Erne was released from his PTO in mid-November and didn’t play another minute of professional hockey.
Still, leave it to a cap-strapped team with a significant need for depth to give Erne his next opportunity. The former 33rd overall selection of the 2013 NHL Draft required another PTO again this September, though he managed to turn it into a one-year, two-way contract this time around.
He’s played fairly well early on for Dallas. Erne has skated in 14 games so far, scoring two goals and three points while averaging 9:37 of ice time and recording 44 hits. The expectation is that Erne will return around American Thanksgiving.
Devils Recall Nathan Legare, Place Zack MacEwen On IR
According to a team announcement, the New Jersey Devils have recalled forward Nathan Legare from the AHL’s Utica Comets. Additionally, the team placed Zack MacEwen on injured reserve in a corresponding roster move.
It’s the first recall of the year for the former 74th overall pick of the 2019 NHL Draft. Legare has spent his first 11 games of the 2025-26 season with the Comets, registering one goal and 21 PIMs with a -7 rating.
If Legare plays in the Devils’ next game against the Washington Capitals, it’ll be his first NHL contest in nearly a year. He earned a three-game stint with New Jersey in December of last year, going scoreless. The remainder of his season was spent in Utica, where he scored 17 goals and 25 points in 69 games with 102 PIMs.
Meanwhile, MacEwen lands on the IR for the second time this season, this time with a lower-body ailment. His recent trip on the IR kept him out of the lineup from October 11th to November 10th. Due to repeated injuries, the physical 29-year-old depth forward has only managed three contests with the Devils this season, going scoreless. MacEwen spent the last two years with the Ottawa Senators, where he scored four goals and six points in 51 games while also recording 104 hits.
Jets Activate Dylan Samberg, Gustav Nyquist From Injured Reserve
The Jets announced they’ve activated defenseman Dylan Samberg and winger Gustav Nyquist from injured reserve. Both will return to the lineup tonight against the Kraken. Winnipeg placed defenseman Haydn Fleury and winger Cole Koepke on IR in their places to stay at the 23-player roster limit.
Tonight marks Samberg’s season debut. The 26-year-old sustained a broken wrist in training camp and required surgery. He’s fresh off landing a three-year, $17.25MM commitment from the Jets in restricted free agency as he returns for his fifth NHL season. The 2017 second-round pick emerged as a core piece of their top four last year, seeing his ice time jump to over 21 minutes per game while serving as the left-hand man for Neal Pionk. In those expanded minutes, Samberg recorded 20 points and a +34 rating in 60 appearances as he and Pionk dominated play to the tune of a 56.7 xGF%, per MoneyPuck.
To say Winnipeg has sorely missed Samberg’s services would be an understatement. They’ve elevated fellow large lefty Logan Stanley into his spot with Pionk while he’s been sidelined, and it hasn’t gone well. The 2016 first-rounder’s seven points and +7 rating in 16 games are quite strong at first glance, but the underlying numbers aren’t there. They’re outscoring opponents 8-3 due to spectacular goaltending from Connor Hellebuyck while they’re on the ice, but are controlling just 42.1% of expected goals and 43.2% of shot attempts. Stanley is bound for a downward slide soon, based on those numbers, so they’re happy to get Samberg back in that spot before it has a chance to happen.
Nyquist is returning from a much briefer absence. He’s sat out the last five games with an undisclosed injury early on Oct. 30 against the Blackhawks. He’ll be returning in a sheltered fourth-line role with Tanner Pearson and Parker Ford after getting consistent middle-six deployment to start the season, the team’s Mitchell Clinton relayed. That’s because Adam Lowry and Cole Perfetti both came off IR in Nyquist’s absence, pushing him down the depth chart.
Winnipeg signed the 36-year-old to a one-year, $3.25MM deal in free agency to add depth in the wake of losing Nikolaj Ehlers to the Hurricanes on the open market. The 14-year vet was coming off a major step back in production following his career-high 75 points with the Predators in 2023-24. He mustered just 11 goals and 28 points in 79 games split between Nashville and Minnesota before staying in the Central Division in free agency with the Jets. He’s had his minutes slashed to 12:19 per game with Winnipeg and is still looking for his first goal of the season but has managed five assists and a +1 rating in 11 appearances.
Fleury is in concussion protocol after departing Tuesday’s game against the Canucks earlier, head coach Scott Arniel said. The IR placement rules him out for the next three games. He’ll be eligible to return on Nov. 21 against the Hurricanes if he clears protocol by then. He’d played a regular role to start the year with Samberg out, but was likely going to come out of the lineup anyway. The 29-year-old had yet to record a point through 15 appearances and logged a -5 rating in under 15 minutes of ice time per game.
Koepke has already been out since sustaining an undisclosed injury against the Sharks on Nov. 7, so the placement only rules him out for tonight’s contest. He’s technically eligible for activation on Saturday against the Flames, a distinct possibility since he’s only considered day-to-day. After signing with the Jets over the offseason, the 27-year-old has two assists and a -4 rating in 14 games.
Ducks Reassign Sam Colangelo
The Ducks announced they’ve reassigned winger Sam Colangelo to AHL San Diego. They’re now left with an open roster spot after activating Ryan Strome from injured reserve earlier in the week. Strome didn’t re-enter the lineup immediately after his activation but will do so tonight, per the team’s Aly Lozoff, prompting Colangelo’s demotion so as not to be carrying three extra forwards. Mikael Granlund is also making his return to the lineup tonight – on a line with fellow veterans Strome and Frank Vatrano – after missing eight games with a lower-body injury, although he never landed on IR.
Colangelo, 23, is waiver-exempt until he plays 28 more NHL games, but he was clearly the odd man out anyway. He’d served as a healthy scratch in six straight and hasn’t played since Halloween. The 2020 second-round pick broke camp with the Ducks for the first time this year after working his way into a semi-regular role down the stretch in 2024-25, notching 10 goals and 12 points in 32 games. The 6’2″ winger has been immensely productive since turning pro out of Western Michigan in 2024, putting up 22 goals and 40 points in 40 AHL contests last year as well.
That led to some rightful optimism that he could be an important depth contributor for Anaheim sooner rather than later, but the Ducks’ additions of Granlund and Chris Kreider over the summer pushed him down the depth chart somewhat. He’s also been overshadowed by 2024 No. 3 overall pick Beckett Sennecke snatching a spot in the top nine and rattling off 11 points through his first 16 NHL games, while Nikita Nesterenko, who also entered the season on the bubble like Colangelo, has churned out seven points in 14 games in a bottom-six role. Colangelo’s ice time has been correspondingly limited, averaging 10:12 through seven contests. When dressed, he’s only managed one goal and a -3 rating.
That’s not to say Colangelo won’t be a productive NHL piece someday, but the cards haven’t yet aligned for him to make the jump. He’ll now head back to familiar stomping grounds in San Diego, where, if the demotion sticks, he should expect to be atop their scoring leaderboard at season’s end.
Avalanche Activate Samuel Girard, Recall Taylor Makar
The Avalanche announced today that they’ve activated defenseman Samuel Girard from injured reserve and recalled winger Taylor Makar from the AHL’s Colorado Eagles. They had three open roster spots after reassigning Jack Ahcan to the Eagles yesterday, so no corresponding moves are required.
So ends what had been a lengthy IR stint for the 27-year-old Girard. He only logged two appearances before sustaining an upper-body injury and being designated as week-to-week. When he returns to the lineup tonight against the Sabres, he’ll be doing so in an unfamiliar third-pairing role with Sam Malinski, per Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette. He’s been a top-four fixture for the better part of seven years for the Avs, but coming off a pair of underwhelming seasons in the points department, he’ll get a bit of a demotion here. There’s an understandable hesitancy to break up the Brent Burns–Josh Manson pairing that emerged in Girard’s absence, which is controlling 58.8% of expected goals and 55.3% of shot attempts at 5-on-5, per MoneyPuck.
Girard is in the penultimate season of the seven-year, $35MM contract extension he signed with the Avs in 2019. At the time, it was viewed as a likely steal in the latter years of the deal, but it’s turned out closer to fair value as he’s seen his numbers dip in the past few seasons. After peaking with a 32-point effort in just 48 games in 2020-21, Girard’s offense has steadied out at around the 30-point range per season over an 82-game pace, and injuries will have limited him to fewer than 70 games in three of the last five seasons, including 2025-26. His possession metrics have taken a hit in some recent years – particularly 2024-25, when he posted a relative Corsi share of -0.9% and controlled an underwhelming 50.1% of expected goals on an Avs team that controlled nearly 54% overall.
They’re hoping some sheltered minutes can help boost his possession impacts and bring him back in line with Colorado’s dominant start to the season in virtually every area. He’ll have something of a breakout partner in Malinski, who’s rattled off eight points and a +10 rating in 17 contests despite being something of an afterthought on the Avs’ blue line.
Makar will make his second career NHL appearance tonight in a fourth-line role with Parker Kelly and Zakhar Bardakov. That duo has had Gavin Brindley as a wingman frequently this season, but the recently-extended youngster is getting a promotion to the top six on Brock Nelson‘s line as Valeri Nichushkin exits the lineup with a lower-body injury that has him out week-to-week.
Cale’s younger brother was a seventh-round pick in 2021 and is in his first professional season after four years in college, three coming with UMass and the fourth with Maine. The 6’4″ checker was buried on a deep UMass club but broke out upon transferring to Maine for his senior season, notching 18 goals, 30 points, and a +24 rating in 38 games. He hasn’t found that same offensive success in the minors, scoring once with four points in 13 games, but is a low-maintenance fourth-line fit in limited minutes.
Makar’s NHL debut came in an overtime loss to the Sharks on the first of the month. He logged eight shifts for 6:07 of ice time, managing a shot attempt and a hit.
Islanders Recall Travis Mitchell
The Islanders announced they’ve recalled defenseman Travis Mitchell from AHL Bridgeport. Defenseman Scott Mayfield was moved to the non-roster list to open up a spot for him, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com reports. He’s unavailable against the Golden Knights tonight while on paternity leave.
Mitchell, 25, wasn’t at the Islanders’ morning skate in Vegas, Rosner reports, and is still on his way to join the club. He won’t be a factor tonight unless he has to be because of a last-minute injury. It will be Adam Boqvist drawing into third-pairing duties with Alexander Romanov in Mayfield’s place, per Rosner.
If Mitchell gets any playing time while Mayfield is out, it would be his NHL debut. He was recalled for a week last November but was scratched for every game. The 6’4″ lefty was an undrafted free agent signing out of Cornell in 2023. While his entry-level contract expired after last season, the Isles extended him a qualifying offer and then re-upped him on a two-way deal to keep him in the organization for 2025-26. He’ll be eligible to test unrestricted free agency at the end of the season via Group VI status.
Mitchell has been a heavy hitter for Bridgeport, but not a ton else. In 12 appearances this season, the Michigan native has three assists with a -1 rating and 27 penalty minutes. He racked up 101 PIMs last year but was also limited to 13 points with a -22 rating in 65 games.
As for Mayfield, he’s done well to re-establish himself this season in year three of his seven-year, $24.5MM contract. He’s played in all 16 games this season after being benched at times over the last two years and is averaging 18:48 of ice time per game, his highest since the 2022-23 season. The shutdown rearguard has three assists and a +1 rating but only has 11 hits, by far the lowest per game of his career.
Avalanche Sign Scott Wedgewood To One-Year Extension
2:03 p.m.: Wedgewood’s contract extension carries $1.9MM in base salary and a $600,000 signing bonus, PuckPedia reports.
12:22 p.m.: The Avalanche announced they’ve signed goaltender Scott Wedgewood to a one-year extension. The deal is worth $2.5MM, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports. He was ticketed for unrestricted free agency next July, but now delays that by another 12 months.
A career backup, Wedgewood has been forced into the starter’s role for Colorado to begin the year with Mackenzie Blackwood missing most of October with a lower-body injury. The 33-year-old has made it hard to justify giving the lion’s share of starts to Blackwood upon his return, though. He’s put together a league-best 10-1-2 record through 14 starts, accompanying that with a .913 SV% and 2.26 GAA. Even behind Colorado’s top-five defense, that’s good for six goals saved above expected to rank 14th in the league, per MoneyPuck.
It’s all the more impressive that his performance has come amid the most taxing workload of his eight-year NHL career by a significant margin. He’s started 14 of 17 games for the Avs, including five of seven since Blackwood was reinstated. He obviously won’t hit the 68 starts he’s on pace for, but he’ll still undoubtedly pass his previous career high of 32 starts and 37 appearances at this rate.
They aren’t expecting the veteran to be a long-term solution, particularly with Blackwood coming off a career year and him being signed through 2029-30 at a cap hit of $5.25MM. It’s still a worthy reward for one of the league’s more unheralded breakouts through the first several weeks. While Colorado’s elite two-way play so far has done most of the heavy lifting, Wedgewood has still given them significantly above-average netminding that’s likely helped them back a few extra points as they’ve rocketed off to an 11-1-5 start, the best in the league.
Colorado acquired Wedgewood from the Predators early last season in exchange for the promising but struggling Justus Annunen, as the Avs swapped out both of their opening-night goalies in separate deals before Christmas. He only got 18 starts behind Blackwood after the move but was exceptional with a 13-4-1 record, .917 SV%, and 1.99 GAA. The late bloomer is now on pace to post above-average save percentages in four of the last five seasons.
A third-round pick by the Devils back in 2010, Wedgewood debuted for them in the 2015-16 season but didn’t see NHL action again until a 20-game run with the Coyotes in 2017-18. He spent two more full seasons in the minors after that before working his way back into the bigs with New Jersey in 2020-21. He hasn’t seen the minors since, aside from a conditioning stint while he was Jake Oettinger‘s backup in Dallas in 2022-23. His career numbers now read as a 72-55-26 record with eight shutouts, a 2.82 GAA, and a .907 SV% in 168 appearances.
It’s a $1MM raise over Wedgewood’s current $1.5MM cap hit, as he’s now in the back half of the two-year deal he signed with Nashville in free agency in 2024. He and Blackwood were already one of the more cost-effective goalie duos in the league this season at a combined price tag of $6.75MM, and $7.75MM for next season isn’t too bad, either. Colorado now has $91.25MM in commitments for 2026-27, affording them $12.75MM in projected cap space assuming a $104MM upper limit with seven roster spots to fill, per MoneyPuck.
Image courtesy of Kirby Lee-Imagn Images.