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Blues Recall Leo Lööf With Nick Leddy To Miss Three Games

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4:00 PM: Defenseman Nick Leddy won’t be joining St. Louis on their upcoming three-game road trip, per Lou Korac of The Hockey News. Leddy will continue to sit out after shifting to injured reserve on October 22nd with a lower-body injury. He hasn’t played since October 15th, and went without any scoring or hits through the first four games of the Blues’ season. St. Louis deployed Leddy as a top-pair defender prior to his injury – leaving big shoes to fill in the lineup, and making St. Louis eager for his return.

9:00 AM: The Blues announced Wednesday that they’d recalled defense prospect Leo Lööf from AHL Springfield. If he plays during his recall, it will be his NHL debut.

Lööf, now 22, was a third-round pick of the Blues in 2020. The 6’1″, 201-lb left-shot defenseman spent his first three post-draft years in Europe, skating for top-level clubs in Sweden (Färjestad BK) and Finland (Ilves) before signing his entry-level contract in April 2023 and coming to North America the following season.

Lööf has appeared solely for Springfield during his entry-level contract, though that may change in the coming days. The physical, two-way defender has yet to see his point totals pop in the minors, failing to score a goal and recording only eight assists in 69 games dating back to last season. It’s a sharp downtick from his numbers in the European pros, where he most recently had four goals and 12 assists for 16 points in 55 Liiga games for Ilves in 2022-23.

Only one of those points has come this season while making 11 appearances for Springfield. However, he’s tied for second on the team with 21 PIMs and is tied for the team lead among defensemen with a +1 rating. While the point totals haven’t come, and his ability to read plays offensively is still translating to North American ice, he’s primarily played an intelligent game and has been a factor physically.

That being said, it’s no guarantee that Lööf gets into a game. The Blues already have six healthy defenders on the roster and likely just wanted an extra body on hand for their three-game East Coast road swing over the next few days. Lööf was one of the top waiver-exempt options they had available, so they don’t have to worry about managing their roster or shaving time off the temporary exemptions for Corey Schueneman, Hunter Skinner or Tyler Tucker after the trio cleared waivers during training camp.

Lööf still has one season left on his entry-level contract after this. Even if he doesn’t play, the recall is financially significant for him—temporarily bumping his salary from just $80K in the minors to a pro-rated $775K while he’s on the NHL roster. He’ll be a restricted free agent in the summer of 2026.

Sabres Place Mattias Samuelsson On IR With Lower-Body Injury

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1:07 p.m.: The Sabres have placed Samuelsson on injured reserve to create a roster spot for Reimer, who they reclaimed off waivers from the Ducks, Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News reports.

10:55 a.m.: Sabres defenseman Mattias Samuelsson will miss multiple weeks with a lower-body injury, the team announced Wednesday. Head coach Lindy Ruff said Samuelsson’s absence could stretch past the one-month mark but is unlikely to be season-ending and won’t require surgery, per Paul Hamilton of WGR Sports Radio 550.

It’s much better news for star center Tage Thompson and starting netminder Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who, like Samuelsson, left Monday’s loss to the Canadiens with injuries. Ruff said they’re both day-to-day and haven’t been ruled out for Thursday’s game against the Blues.

It’s unclear when exactly Samuelsson sustained the injury, but it took him out of action about midway through the game. The 24-year-old was making his first appearance since Nov. 2 after being a healthy scratch in three straight Sabres wins.

Very quickly, the seven-year, $30MM extension Samuelsson signed at the beginning of the 2022-23 campaign looks like an incredibly premature decision from general manager Kevyn Adams. Injuries have significantly hampered the 2018 second-round pick at every turn during his five-year NHL career, and he’s never played more than 55 games in a single season. Last year, shoulder surgery ended his season in January after 41 games. Knee and upper-body issues also kept him out for lengthy stretches of 2022-23.

In years past, Samuelsson was still an effective stay-at-home defender when healthy, often having a tangible impact on the Sabres’ record when in the lineup. It’s been almost the opposite this year, though. Samuelsson has one assist and a -2 rating while averaging a career-low 16:05 per game, and Buffalo is 4-8-1 with him in the lineup compared to 3-0-0 without him.

The Sabres still have Dennis Gilbert and Henri Jokiharju on hand as extra defenders to re-enter the lineup against the Blues tomorrow in place of Samuelsson. Still, expect the defenseman to land on IR at some point in the next 24 hours to give Buffalo roster flexibility to summon potential injury replacements from AHL Rochester for Thompson and Luukkonen.

Samuelsson still has five seasons left on his contract after this one at a $4.286MM cap hit. He doesn’t carry any trade protection.

Meanwhile, losing Thompson for any length of time, even for just a game, is tough news for the Sabres to swallow as they try to climb over .500 and put themselves back in the conversation for a wild-card spot in the East. His 18 points in 16 games lead the team, and his 10 even-strength goals are tied with Leon Draisaitl and Nikita Kucherov for the league lead.

Luukkonen has also been quite solid for the Sabres this season, taking over in the early going as their true starter instead of splitting duties with 23-year-old Devon Levi, as most expected. After signing a five-year, $23.75MM deal over the summer, he has a 6-4-1 record, .903 SV%, 2.83 GAA, and 1.2 GSAA in 12 starts. If he can’t go, perhaps James Reimer could back up Levi tomorrow if Buffalo re-claims him off waivers from the Ducks.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Hurricanes Activate, Reassign Riley Stillman

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Nov. 13: Stillman cleared waivers and is on his way to the AHL, according to Friedman.

Nov. 12: The Hurricanes have placed defenseman Riley Stillman on waivers with the intent to assign him to AHL Chicago, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. The move indicates he’s been activated from season-opening injured reserve after missing the past couple of months with a lower-body injury.

Stillman, 26, hasn’t played in the NHL since April 2023 with the Sabres. He spent all of last season on assignment to their AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans, where the heavy-hitting 6’2″ defender struggled with only six points in 47 games with a -4 rating.

The 2016 fourth-round pick of the Panthers was hoping to get his career back on track with the Canes, who inked him to a two-way deal ($775K/$150K) in the first few days of free agency. There was a small opening for him to potentially stick on the roster as a seventh defenseman, but without a full training camp to evaluate him, it was a foregone conclusion that he’d end up on waivers after he was medically cleared to play.

Over the course of five seasons, Stillman has 158 NHL games under his belt with the Panthers, Blackhawks, Canucks, and Sabres. He’s scored four goals and 22 assists for 26 points, compiling a -19 rating with 197 blocks and 318 hits while averaging 15:49 per game.

Sabres Reclaim James Reimer Off Waivers From Ducks

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Nov. 13: The Sabres have reclaimed Reimer off waivers from the Ducks, per Friedman. It’s unclear if they were the only team to submit a claim, but regardless, he’ll likely remain on the active roster for now with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen out day-to-day with an undisclosed injury.

Nov. 12: The Ducks have placed goaltender James Reimer on waivers for the purpose of assignment to AHL San Diego, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports Tuesday.

Anaheim acquired Reimer, 36, off waivers from the Sabres in early October, just before the regular season began. If Buffalo submits a claim for Reimer over the next 24 hours and is the only team to do so, they can send him directly to their AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans.

The Ducks claimed Reimer to provide veteran support to breakout starter Lukáš Dostál while John Gibson was on the shelf for the first few weeks of the season after undergoing appendectomy surgery. With Dostál putting up some of the best numbers in the league in the early going, Reimer made only two starts over the past month, winning neither of them and posting a subpar .864 SV%, 4.50 GAA and -2.4 GSAA. Gibson came off injured reserve last Friday, meaning Reimer was no longer needed on the active roster.

Reimer is coming off a solid campaign with the Red Wings, where he recorded a .904 SV% and 3.11 GAA in 20 starts and five relief appearances. Those numbers indicate he still has it in him to be a solid backup option and could certainly handle a No. 3 role. That’s what the Sabres were banking on when they signed him to a one-year, $1MM contract over the summer, likely hoping that a seven-figure price tag was high enough to deter teams from claiming off waivers when they attempted to send him down at the beginning of the year.

That didn’t happen, but they’ll get another chance to have him starting for their minor-league affiliate while providing a much more stable recall option in case of injury to either Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen or Devon Levi than what they currently have. Their current No. 3 option, former Flyer Felix Sandström, has a .900 SV% in five appearances for the Amerks.

Bruins Recall Jordan Oesterle

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The Bruins have recalled defenseman Jordan Oesterle from AHL Providence, per Conor Ryan of The Boston Globe. He’ll slot into the lineup for his Bruins debut if Hampus Lindholm, who left Tuesday’s game against the Blues with a lower-body injury, can’t play Thursday in Dallas.

Oesterle, 32, is in his first season with the Bruins after inking a two-year, two-way deal in free agency over the summer. The veteran of 371 NHL games is no longer a full-time fixture at the game’s highest level and has now seen minor-league assignments in back-to-back seasons, but he’s still a capable call-up option who can log third-pairing minutes without much fuss.

The Michigan native spent last season with the Flames, posting two assists and a -6 rating in 22 games while averaging 13:31 per night. He controlled 48.6% of shot attempts at even strength, his highest number since the 2017-18 season.

Oesterle is off to a hot start with the P-Bruins, where he serves as an alternate captain and leads defensemen in scoring with three goals and five assists in nine games. The Bruins had a pair of open roster spots after sending down Matthew Poitras earlier in the week, so no corresponding roster fanfare is needed to accommodate Oesterle’s recall.

It’ll be a tough break for the hot-and-cold Bruins if Lindholm misses any length of time, although he hasn’t been labeled anything aside from day-to-day yet. The 30-year-old is the only Boston defender to post a Corsi share over 50% at even strength this season and leads Bruins blue-liners in scoring with seven points (3 G, 4 A) in 17 games.

Maple Leafs Activate Jani Hakanpää From Long-Term Injured Reserve

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The Maple Leafs announced Wednesday that they’ve reinstated defenseman Jani Hakanpää from his conditioning loan and activated him from long-term injured reserve. He’s expected to make his Toronto debut tonight against the Capitals.

It’s been a long road back for Hakanpää, who last played an NHL game on March 16 with the Stars before a knee injury ended his season. The 32-year-old reportedly had arthroscopic surgery over the summer before agreeing to terms on a two-year, $3MM contract.

But weeks came and went without the Maple Leafs registering the deal. That’s because Hakanpää and Toronto’s medical staff had a difference of opinion on what type of rehabilitation he still needed for his knee before they would clear him to play. After more than two months of additional discussions, the two sides finally put pen to paper on a one-year, $1.47MM contract with an eight-team no-trade list.

That didn’t mean Hakanpää was healthy, though, and he skated only briefly during camp and started the season on long-term injured reserve as expected. He was assigned to AHL Toronto on a conditioning loan at the beginning of the month, posting zeros across the board in two appearances – his first minor-league action since the 2019-20 season.

While all signs point to him playing tonight, it’s unclear who he’ll replace. Given he’s a right-shot defender, though, it’ll likely be Conor Timmins heading to the press box. The 26-year-old sitting as a healthy scratch is a good problem to have for Toronto, though. He’s done quite well in a third-pairing role this season, posting four points and a +5 rating through 15 games while controlling 52.4% of shot attempts at even strength.

Hakanpää, who checks in at 6’6″ and 225 lbs, has been a serviceable fringe top-four option with the Stars for the past three years and routinely was among the league’s leaders in hits. The 2022-23 campaign saw him record career-highs across the board with six goals, 16 points, a +18 rating, 128 blocks, and 86 shots on goal while averaging 19:20 per game.

The Maple Leafs had an open roster spot after assigning Matt Benning to the minors yesterday, so no corresponding transaction is required.

Ducks Recall Jansen Harkins, Drew Helleson

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The Ducks have recalled forward Jansen Harkins and defenseman Drew Helleson from AHL San Diego ahead of Wednesday’s home game against the Golden Knights, Patrick Present of The Hockey News reports.

The moves give Anaheim some necessary reinforcements, especially up front. The team placed Robby Fabbri and Cam Fowler on injured reserve yesterday with lower-body and upper-body injuries, respectively, while also announcing that Mason McTavish was day-to-day with an undisclosed injury and uncertain for tonight’s game. Without Fabbri and McTavish, the Ducks would have only had 11 forwards and six defensemen on hand.

Harkins and Helleson thus come up to fill the two roster spots vacated by Fabbri and Fowler’s IR placements. While Helleson is likely ticketed for the press box, Harkins will likely find himself making his second appearance of the season should McTavish miss the game.

Harkins, 27, signed a two-year, $1.58MM contract with Anaheim in free agency over the summer. Despite inking a one-way contract, though, he failed to make the team out of camp and cleared waivers at the end of the preseason.

He’s been recalled once, recording a shot, hit and block in 10:11 of ice time in an overtime loss against the Avalanche on Oct. 18. The versatile 6’2″ forward has continued to be a high-end point-producer in the AHL – his 17 points (5 G, 12 A) in 11 games for San Diego are tied with Vinnie Hinostroza for the league lead.

Despite producing over a point per game in the AHL over the last three seasons, Harkins still hasn’t had much offensive success in the NHL. The 2015 second-round pick has made 200 career appearances with Anaheim, Pittsburgh and Winnipeg but has only 13 goals and 18 assists for 31 points with a -12 rating while averaging just 9:22 per game. Last season, his only one in the Penguins organization, was especially difficult for him. He made 45 appearances but failed to score a goal on 37 shots, only totaling four assists.

Meanwhile, the 23-year-old Helleson will look to play in his first NHL game since the 2022-23 season while Fowler is on the shelf. The 2019 second-rounder has struggled heavily with San Diego this season, though, posting no points and a -5 rating in 12 outings. The 6’3″ right-shot defender scored once and averaged 13:39 per game across three NHL contests two years ago, his only top-level audition to date.

The Ducks’ active roster is now full, although that will likely change this afternoon. Goaltender James Reimer is on waivers and his roster spot will open up, either by virtue of him being claimed or being assigned to San Diego.

Lightning Recall Gage Goncalves

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The Lightning announced Wednesday that they’ve recalled forward Gage Goncalves from AHL Syracuse. It’s the second recall of the month for the 23-year-old after he made his season debut in a pair of games last week.

His recall indicates that star center Brayden Point, who sustained a lower-body injury in a loss to the Jets on Nov. 3 and is still listed as day-to-day, may not be available when Tampa takes on Winnipeg again on Thursday night. Point was expected to slot back into the lineup tomorrow with the Bolts having a week-long break in their schedule, and he practiced in his usual top-line role as recently as Sunday, per Gabby Shirley of FanDuel Sports Network Florida.

The Lightning have only been carrying an extra forward on the roster this season when necessary to bank as much cap space as possible ahead of the trade deadline. Point remains on the active roster and not on injured reserve, but they still have an open roster spot after Goncalves’ recall. If Point can’t play, Goncalves will make his third straight appearance for the Bolts tomorrow.

Goncalves, the latter of the team’s two second-round selections in the 2020 draft, has one shot on goal, two hits and averaged 10:12 of ice time over his pair of appearances last week. The British Columbia native has also made five appearances for Syracuse, tying for the team lead with six assists and leading the club with 1.20 points per game.

Goncalves is no longer waiver-exempt, so every game he plays and every day he spends on the active roster shaves precious time off his temporary exemption after clearing waivers at the beginning of the regular season. His previous recall lasted four days, so he can appear in eight more games or stay on the roster for 26 more days, whichever comes first, before he needs waivers again to return to Syracuse.

The 6’1″, 183-lb center will be a restricted free agent next summer with arbitration eligibility. He signed a one-year, two-way extension in June to avoid hitting restricted free agency last summer as his entry-level contract was set to expire.

Minor Transactions: 11/12/24

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There have been a few smaller transactions with NHL connections around the hockey world, whether it’s paper transactions, a short-term recall, or prospect-related.  We’ll run through those here.

  • Following their acquisition of Lars Eller, the Capitals announced that they’ve re-assigned center Michael Sgarbossa to AHL Hershey. The 32-year-old has played in three games with Washington this season, picking up a goal and an assist.  Sgarbossa has a goal and eight helpers in seven games with the Bears so far this season.
  • The Hurricanes announced that they’ve re-assigned defenseman Ty Smith to AHL Chicago. Carolina recalled the 24-year-old on Sunday but didn’t play him.  Smith has three assists in four games with the Wolves so far this season and has 123 career NHL appearances under his belt from his time with New Jersey and Pittsburgh.
  • Following yesterday’s victory over Nashville, the Avalanche announced (Twitter link) that they’ve assigned forwards Nikita Prishchepov and T.J. Tynan to AHL Colorado. They’ve done this several times now in a money-saving measure.  Prishchepov, a seventh-round pick back in June, has been held off the scoresheet in five games with the Avs so far while Tynan has an assist in six appearances.
  • Canadiens prospect Joe Vrbetic has signed a one-year deal with ECHL Indy, per a team announcement. Montreal drafted the 22-year-old in the seventh round in 2021 but he hasn’t played with any of their affiliates this season.  Vrbetic had a 3.52 GAA with a .891 SV% in 33 games last season with ECHL Trois-Rivieres.  The Canadiens hold his draft rights until June 1, 2025.

Wild Recall Daemon Hunt

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After Jonas Brodin exited Sunday’s game with an undisclosed injury, the Wild have added some help on the back end.  The team announced that they’ve recalled blueliner Daemon Hunt from AHL Iowa.

It’s the fourth recall already this season for the 22-year-old but he hasn’t seen much NHL action in his first three stints as he has only played once for Minnesota this season, logging just 8:01 of ice time nearly a month ago versus St. Louis.  Hunt has also suited up for six games in Iowa this season, picking up a pair of assists.

Hunt has a total of 13 career NHL appearances under his belt, all with the Wild who drafted him in the third round back in 2020 (65th overall).  He’s in the final year of his entry-level contract and will be owed a qualifying offer of nearly $814K this summer.

Minnesota was only carrying 21 players on its active roster before the recall so no corresponding roster move was needed.  There’s also no word yet on how much time, if any, Brodin will miss.

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