Canadiens Place Kaiden Guhle And Kirby Dach On LTIR
When the Canadiens acquired Phillip Danault a little before the holiday roster freeze, they added a $5.5MM price tag to their books. Even after assigning Jared Davidson to the minors, they still weren’t cap-compliant. As a result, GM Kent Hughes revealed during his media availability today (video link) that the team has placed defenseman Kaiden Guhle and center Kirby Dach on LTIR.
Guhle has been out of the lineup since mid-October due to an adductor injury. The original plan was to simply rehab it but after returning to the ice a few weeks later as he tried to work his way back to full health, the decision was made to have the surgery. The recovery timeline for that procedure is eight to ten weeks, meaning he’s still four to six weeks away from returning. Guhle has averaged over 20 minutes a night of playing time in each of his first three NHL seasons and, when healthy, is a top-four fixture on Montreal’s back end.
As for Dach, he has missed the last month after sustaining a fractured foot. The initial recovery timeline was six to eight weeks and it appears he’s on track as he has resumed skating. Hughes indicated that the 24-year-old won’t be back before the holiday break but shouldn’t be out much longer than that. Dach has five goals and two assists in 15 games this season, his last one before becoming a restricted free agent with a $4MM qualifying offer and arbitration rights next offseason.
With the two placements, Montreal now has around $2.5MM in its LTIR pool, per PuckPedia. That gives them ample room to afford recalls if more injuries strike in the short term. Meanwhile, if they still need LTIR room when Dach returns, they can transfer either Patrik Laine or Alex Newhook on there; both are out for multiple months as well.
Devils Activate Timo Meier, Assign Two To AHL
The Devils made a trio of roster moves before Friday’s freeze. The team announced that winger Timo Meier has been activated off the non-roster list while winger Xavier Parent and defenseman Calen Addison were assigned to AHL Utica.
Meier had been away from the team for a little more than a week due to a family health matter. The 29-year-old is a key cog in New Jersey’s attack and got off to a strong start this season with 11 goals and 12 assists in 30 games while averaging a little under 19 minutes per game of playing time. Considering that the Devils are without five forwards at the moment (headlined by Jack Hughes and rookie Arseny Gritsyuk), his return will certainly be a significant one.
As for Parent, he received his first career NHL promotion earlier this month. The 24-year-old got into five games with the Devils while on recall but was held off the scoresheet while recording two shots and seven hits in 8:34 of ice time per night. Parent has been fairly productive in the minors with the Comets though, chipping in with six goals and six assists through 20 appearances so far.
Addison, meanwhile, received his first recall of the season last weekend but didn’t see any game action. A veteran of 152 career NHL appearances over parts of four seasons, the 25-year-old has gotten into 21 games with Utica, picking up two goals and seven assists. He and Parent will have to play in at least one game with the Comets before becoming recall-eligible again.
As a result of these moves, New Jersey now has one vacancy on its 23-player roster. That spot could be filled before long by one of their players currently on IR or a recall later on from the Comets.
Lightning Recall Jakob Pelletier And Jack Finley, Place Brandon Hagel On IR
The Lightning have brought up a pair of wingers in advance of their game tonight against Carolina. The team announced that they have recalled Jakob Pelletier and Jack Finley from AHL Syracuse.
Pelletier is in his first season with Tampa Bay after signing a three-year deal with them in free agency. However, he didn’t make the team in training camp and cleared waivers, paving the way for him to be sent down.
The 24-year-old played in one game with the Lightning in mid-November but has been with the Crunch exclusively beyond that. Pelletier has been quite productive in Syracuse as he’s tied for the league lead in scoring with 15 goals and 16 assists in just 24 games. Nearly a career point-per-game player in the minors (161 points in 163 outings), it will be interesting to see if he gets more of an offensive look with some of Tampa Bay’s better forwards banged up.
To that end, team reporter Benjamin Pierce relays that winger Brandon Hagel will miss his second straight game with an upper-body injury sustained earlier in the week against Florida. While not announced by the team, he has been moved to injured reserve, per the NHL’s Media Site, meaning he’ll likely be out through the holiday break. The 27-year-old has been one of Tampa Bay’s top performers this season, collecting 18 goals and 13 assists in 31 games. Meanwhile, winger Nikita Kucherov is listed as a game-time decision due to illness.
Finley, meanwhile, returns from a conditioning stint that lasted just three games. He did well in those outings, picking up a goal and two assists while getting a chance to play a much bigger role than he did with Tampa Bay. The 23-year-old has been limited to just 11 games with the Lightning this season where he has a goal and an assist while averaging 8:49 per game of ice time. More specifically, he had only suited up twice since November 25th so the timing was right for him to go down and get some work in with the Crunch.
Wild Activate Four Players, Place Two On IR
The Wild have been quite active when it comes to roster moves today. Michael Russo of The Athletic relays (Twitter link) that defensemen Jonas Brodin and Jacob Middleton along with forwards Mats Zuccarello and Vinnie Hinostroza have all been activated off injured reserve. In corresponding moves, defenseman Zach Bogosian and Daemon Hunt were both moved to IR.
Brodin has missed a little more than a week with a lower-body injury. The 32-year-old has been his usual reliable self defensively for Minnesota this season, sitting second on the team in blocked shots with 66 while being one of their most-used penalty killers. Through 30 outings, he has three goals and six assists and is logging over 22 minutes per game of ice time for the sixth straight year. With them facing Edmonton’s strong attack this afternoon, his return to their shutdown pairing will certainly be a welcome one.
As for Middleton, he has missed the last couple of weeks with an upper-body issue. After averaging nearly a career-high 22 minutes per game last season, his role has been more limited this year. Through 28 games, the 29-year-old has six assists along with 43 blocks and 42 hits while playing 18:08 per night, slotting in fifth among Minnesota’s defenders. He also takes a regular turn on their penalty kill and should give that unit a boost as well.
Zuccarello has also missed the last couple of weeks with an upper-body injury but that’s not the only time he has been on the shelf this season. As a result, the 38-year-old has been limited to just 15 games so far. However, Zuccarello has been productive in those outings, picking up two goals and ten assists in a little under 18 minutes per night of playing time. He should slot back into a top-six role and deepen Minnesota’s offensive depth.
Hinostroza, meanwhile, had missed the last month with a lower-body issue. Before being sidelined, he had been a regular in the bottom six for the Wild although offensive production was hard to come by as he has just two goals and three assists in 22 games thus far. While Hinostroza has spent a lot of this season on the wing, he is a natural center and with their depth down the middle taking a hit with last week’s trade that saw Marco Rossi go to Vancouver, having another veteran who can play down the middle when needed will help.
As for those landing on IR, Bogosian has missed the last two games with a lower-body injury. If the placement is backdated to December 14th (the day he was injured), he technically would be eligible to be activated as soon as Sunday. Having said that, they have an open roster spot after these moves so if Bogosian was that close to returning, they likely wouldn’t have placed him on IR in the first place. An 18-year NHL veteran, Bogosian has had a fairly limited role when he has been in the lineup this season, logging around 15 minutes per game of ice time while chipping in with two points in 17 outings.
Lastly, Hunt has played sparingly this season, suiting up in just a dozen games, suffering an undisclosed injury in the last of those on Tuesday. The 23-year-old is waiver-eligible and it’s clear that Minnesota doesn’t want to risk putting him on the wire so he has often served as their reserve defender. Hunt has two assists and 18 blocks in a dozen outings but is averaging just 12:26 per night. There is no word on how long he or Bogosian will be out.
Montreal Canadiens Reassign Jared Davidson
After acquiring Phillip Danault from the Los Angeles Kings yesterday evening, the Montreal Canadiens had one extra player on their active roster. To return to compliance, the Canadiens announced that they’ve assigned forward Jared Davidson to the AHL’s Laval Rocket.
Davidson, 23, is in his third professional season and is 15 games away from registering his rookie campaign in the NHL. The native of Edmonton, AB, was drafted by Montreal with the 130th overall pick of the 2022 NHL Draft.
After concluding his major junior career with the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds, Davidson joined AHL Laval for the 2023-24 season. He finished 18th on the team in scoring but ninth in goal-scoring with 11 goals and 16 points in 38 games.
He came into his own last season and elevated his status to being a legitimate prospect for Montreal. Davidson scored 24 goals and 45 points in 69 games for the Rocket last year with a +25 rating. He finished second on the team in goal-scoring and third in total output, while also adding two goals and four points in 13 postseason contests as Laval reached the Eastern Conference Final.
His start to the 2025-26 campaign made him an obvious choice to replace Alex Newhook once he landed on the injured reserve in mid-November. He remains tied for sixth on the Rocket in scoring with nine goals and 11 points in 13 games. Unfortunately, that offensive success didn’t translate to his brief time with the Canadiens, as he registered only one assist in 10 contests.
Still, Davidson was extremely limited in his usage, averaging 8:43 of ice time per night. Additionally, he’s been a healthy scratch for seven contests. Regardless, his 18 hits show he’s unafraid to get involved physically, and should remain a prime recall candidate if the Canadiens run into injury trouble again.
Blue Jackets Acquire Mason Marchment
The Columbus Blue Jackets have acquired winger Mason Marchment from the Seattle Kraken in exchange for Columbus’s 2027 second-round pick and the New York Rangers’ 2026 fourth-round pick. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was the first to report the move. There is no salary retention in the trade, per Chris Johnston of The Athletic.
It’s been exactly six months since Marchment originally joined the Kraken in an offseason trade. Seattle used a combination of a 2025 fourth-round pick and a 2026 third-round pick at the time. Despite Marchment’s play leaving much to be desired, they were able to improve their draft capital somewhat.
Outside of some mild injury concerns, Marchment never looked fully at home in the Pacific Northwest. Before the trade, the 30-year-old winger was tied for eighth on the team in scoring with four goals and 13 points in 29 games with a -4 rating. Seattle was likely looking for much more offense since Marchment was averaging nearly 17 minutes of ice time per night.
In fairness, Marchment had been averaging a 13.4% shooting percentage since the 2021-22 season, meaning his 8.7% mark this year was likely going to increase at some point. His possession metrics and on-ice save percentage at even strength have each stayed fairly consistent.
Still, there was no sticking around in Seattle for the long haul this year. The Kraken started relatively well this year, managing an 11-5-5 record through their first 21 contests. At the time, Seattle was second in the Pacific Division and only one point back of the division-leading Anaheim Ducks.
Unfortunately, it has been an unmitigated disaster since, winning only one of their previous 11 contests, falling to a tie of last place in the entire league. That made Marchment and the rest of the Kraken’s pending unrestricted free agents obvious trade candidates.
The trade is somewhat peculiar from the Blue Jackets’ perspective. While the Kraken are tied for last place in the Western Conference (and league), Columbus can say the same in the Eastern Conference. At the time of writing, the Blue Jackets are six points back of the final wild-card spot, and seven points back of a Metro Division playoff position.
Furthermore, they aren’t having many issues regarding offense. Columbus is currently 21st in the league, averaging 2.88 GF/G and an 18th-ranked power play (18.07%). It’ll help if Marchment can return to the 55-point average he enjoyed from 2021-22 to 2024-25, but the Blue Jackets needed much more help on defense.
The Blue Jackets are 32nd in the league in GF/G (3.50), 30th in penalty kill percentage (72.04%), 21st in SV% (.887), and 30th in shots against (1056). Marchment is a perfectly capable winger on the defensive side of the puck, but there’s no guarantee he’ll garner enough ice time in Columbus to make a real difference in that aspect. Assuming he’s placed in a familiar middle-six role while at even strength, the Blue Jackets may continue to struggle regardless of adding Marchment to the lineup.
Photo courtesy of Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images.
PHR’s Brennan McClain contributed significantly to this article.
Canadiens Acquire Phillip Danault
A familiar face has returned to Montreal, as the Canadiens have announced that they have acquired Kings forward Phillip Danault in exchange for the Blue Jackets’ 2026 second-round pick.
Los Angeles finds a new home for Danault, just an hour before the holiday roster freeze kicks in. The Kings had been examining trade options for the veteran middleman over the past few weeks amid one of the more difficult offensive stretches of his career. In 30 games this season, he’s yet to score a goal and has only mustered five assists.
Defensive acumen was always the highlight of the 32-year-old’s game, though. That hasn’t trailed off at all, with the 6’1″ pivot still managing a +3 rating in tough deployment despite the lack of offensive production going through him on the ice thus far. The paucity of goal-scoring also shouldn’t be conflated with a lack of trying. He’s averaging 2.93 shot attempts per game, slightly below his career average but far from a career-low.
The Kings were left with something of an excess of down-the-middle depth, too. Moving Quinton Byfield back to center had shifted Danault to a third-line role at even strength after shouldering duties as L.A.’s second-line center behind Anže Kopitar ever since his arrival in Hollywood in free agency in 2021. The Habs, who have long been looking to add an impact top-nine center as their rebuild draws to a close, were in even more dire need of help down the middle after losing center options Kirby Dach and Alex Newhook to injuries.
They won’t find the offensive needle-mover they were looking for in Danault, but he’s still a meaningful upgrade in the No. 2 slot behind captain Nick Suzuki over rookie Oliver Kapanen, at least in terms of two-way play. Assuming he is deployed there by head coach Martin St. Louis and gets extensive playing time with Calder Trophy candidate Ivan Demidov, Danault’s point production should come back alive.
Danault’s inclusion should also provide a meaningful boost to the Habs’ underlying numbers. Kapanen and Demidov have controlled 49.1% of expected goals with Newhook on their left flank and a horrid 38% with Juraj Slafkovsky in that slot at 5-on-5 this season. Danault hasn’t recorded a sub-50 xGF% since his rookie season, split between Chicago and Montreal back in 2015-16.
Aside from the obvious fit, as underscored by the Habs’ reported interest, it’s a feel-good story to reunite Montreal with its top center during their last deep playoff run to the 2021 Stanley Cup Final. That was the last of Danault’s six seasons in Montreal during his first run there, often used as their top-line anchor alongside Brendan Gallagher, including a career-high 41 assists in the 2018-19 season. He was top 10 in Selke Trophy voting in each of his final three seasons for the Habs and recorded 194 points in 360 games for them.
He’s now set to add to that total as the Habs only need to part ways with one of two second-rounders they were ticketed to hold in next year’s draft. They retain their own selection, parting ways with a pick they acquired from Columbus in the Patrik Laine deal.
The Kings won’t be enthused with the return. Danault is cost-controlled through next season at $5.5MM, and L.A. was hoping to make any trade a player-for-player swap rather than taking back futures. Nonetheless, it was becoming clear the Kings wanted a quick resolution, short of Danault outright asking for a trade, giving themselves time to flip the pick for a replacement on the other side of the roster freeze if they so choose.
PHR’s Josh Erickson contributed significantly to this article.
Image courtesy of Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images.
Stars Activate Adam Erne From Injured Reserve
The Dallas Stars announced earlier today that Adam Erne has been activated from long term injured reserve. The forward landed on IR in early November, after a lower-body injury sustained against Ottawa on November 11.
It had previously been thought that Erne would return by late November, but thankfully the depth winger appears to be fully healthy.
Now 30, Erne carved out 379 NHL games between Tampa Bay, Detroit, and Edmonton from 2017-24 as a bottom sixer. However, after failing to secure an NHL contract for the 2024-25 season, and being released from a PTO from the AHL’s Hartford Wolfpack after just one assist in 10 games, it seemed as if Erne reached a dead end in North American professional hockey.
Undeterred, after a successful PTO with one of the league’s top teams, Erne bounced back to earn a one-year two-way deal for this season worth $775k. Prior to going down, he notched two goals and an assist in 14 games for the Stars. Although the club remains elite, not much missing a beat over the past few weeks without him, Erne will be a welcome face back tonight in Anaheim with his physicality and forechecking.
Capitals Recall Ivan Miroshnichenko, Reassign Bogdan Trineyev
The Capitals announced they’ve recalled winger Ivan Miroshnichenko from AHL Hershey and returned winger Bogdan Trineyev to Hershey in the corresponding move. Washington’s active roster remains at the 23-player limit.
The Caps have been dipping into the minor-league depth since Ryan Leonard went down with a shoulder injury earlier this month. Trineyev was the name to get recalled in the immediate aftermath. Although he’s remained on the active roster since, his playing time has been limited with just two appearances.
Those games, a Dec. 13 showing against the Jets and yesterday’s outing against the Maple Leafs, were the first two outings of Trineyev’s NHL career. The 23-year-old was a fourth-round pick in 2020 and had notched 50 points and a +32 rating in 143 career appearances for Hershey before the recall.
Trineyev held his own in a fourth-line role but didn’t really move the needle. Averaging 10:32 per game, he managed three shot attempts, two blocks, and a hit, but didn’t get on the scoresheet. He was part of a dominant defensive effort with linemates Brandon Duhaime and Nic Dowd, only allowing 1.06 xGA/60 at 5-on-5.
Perhaps there’s a place for the 6’3″, 203-lb winger down the line as a cheap fourth-line option, but he’s not a roster lock yet. He’ll return to Hershey, where he’s tracking for a career year offensively with 12 points in 16 games.
Miroshnichenko, Washington’s first-round pick in 2022, gets his first NHL look of the season in his countryman’s wake. The 6’1″ sniper has gotten lengthy looks on the Caps’ roster in each of his first two seasons in North America, logging 21 appearances in 2023-24 and 18 last year. He’s got a 3-7–10 scoring line and a -3 rating to show for it across 39 games.
The 21-year-old has been a top-scoring presence for Hershey since his arrival over two years ago, and that hasn’t changed in 2025-26. Miroshnichenko missed half their schedule with an injury but has been productive when in the lineup, notching four goals and nine points in 12 games. He’ll look to keep that momentum up in a familiar depth scoring role, presumably until Leonard returns in the next couple of weeks.
Flyers Recall Denver Barkey For NHL Debut
The Flyers announced they’ve recalled center prospect Denver Barkey from the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms. To open a roster spot, the team sent down defenseman Egor Zamula to Lehigh Valley after he cleared waivers earlier Friday. Barkey is expected to make his NHL debut Saturday afternoon against the Rangers.
Barkey, 20, is in the early stages of his first professional season after being drafted in the third round (No. 95 overall) by Philadelphia in 2023. He slipped a few spots past where most expected him to go in the draft, but he wasn’t viewed as much more than a potential mid-second round pick at best.
His stock exploded during his post-draft season. In 64 games for the OHL’s London Knights, he rattled off 35 goals and 102 points to lead the team in scoring and be named to the league’s Second All-Star Team. Last season, he captained the Knights to the second of back-to-back titles, took home a Memorial Cup ring for good measure, and averaged two points per game in the OHL playoffs.
At 5’10” and 172 lbs, Barkey plays bigger than his size. He’s one of the more energetic skaters in the Flyers’ system with above-average playmaking. Still, prospect evaluators are split on his ceiling. In preseason rankings, Elite Prospects named him the 13th-ranked prospect in Philly’s pool, projecting him as a third-line checking center or left-winger at best. The Athletic’s Corey Pronman had Barkey outside his top 13 rankings altogether, while Steven Ellis of Daily Faceoff put him at No. 6, labeling him as a versatile top-nine piece.
Evidently, the Flyers have liked what they’ve seen from Barkey through his first 26 games with the Phantoms. His seven goals are tied for second on the team, and he’s fourth in points with 16. He’ll now get his first chance to show what he can do in NHL minutes, even if it’s not expected to be a lengthy call-up with 13 healthy names ahead of him on the depth chart.