NHL Hockey Player News

Matt Lindblad(LW)|
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Call up / Send down
The Bruins have recalled Matt Lindblad from Providence (AHL).

Lindblad has skated in 43 games this season for the Providence Bruins, tallying seven goals and 15 assists (22 points). Head coach Claude Julien said that Lindblad will probably make his NHL debut on Saturday.

Source:
Boston Bruins 2014-03-14T12:17:30.000Z
Matt Lindblad
Johan Sundstrom(C)|INA
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Call up / Send down
The Islanders have recalled Johan Sundstrom from Bridgeport (AHL) and he will make his NHL debut tonight.

Sundstrom was the Islanders second-round pick (50th overall) in 2011. He has seven goals and 10 assists (17 points) in 38 games in his second season with Bridgeport. He will skate on the fourth line with Mike Halmo and Casey Cizikas tonight.

Source:
@NYIslanders 2018-07-18T17:53:21.951Z
Nathan Lawson(G)|INA
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Call up / Send down
The Senators have recalled goaltender Nathan Lawson from Binghamton (AHL).

This move means that Craig Anderson will not be ready for Saturday's game and Lawson will likely back-up Robin Lehner. Lawson is on recall from the B-Sens for the second time this season. He previously served as back-up to Lehner for two games in early November. He has a record of 15-7-1, in addition to a 2.90 GAAand a .910 SV% through 28 appearances with Binghamton this season. He earned a record of 1-4-2 over 10 games with the New York Islanders in his only previous NHL season of 2010-11.

Source:
Ottawa Senators 2018-07-18T17:53:27.903Z
Travis Morin(C)|
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Call up / Send down
The Stars have recalled Travis Morin from Texas (AHL).

Morin, 30, is in his sixth season with the Stars organization and his ninth in professional hockey. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound forward leads the AHL with 74 points (29G / 45A) in 55 games for the Texas Stars this season and has a plus-1 rating in three games with Dallas in 2013-14. He will likely get in the lineup tonight with Cody Eakin listed as doubtful.

Source:
Dallas Stars 2014-03-14T10:08:38.000Z
Travis Morin
Quinton Howden(C)|
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Call up / Send down
The Panthers have recalled Quinton Howden from San Antonio (AHL).

Howden, 22, was drafted in the first-round (25th overall) in 2010. He has yet to play with the Panthers this season, but had zero potions in 18 games with them in 2012-13. He has been recalled because Sean Bergenheim is unavailable for Thursday's meeting with the Lightning. Howden has 10 goals and 17 assists (27 points) in 57 games with San Antonio this season.

Source:
David Neal 2014-03-13T10:24:58.000Z
Quinton Howden
Alex Petrovic(RD)|DAL
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Call up / Send down
The Panthers recalled Alex Petrovic from San Antonio (AHL).

Petrovic had no points in five games with the Panthers earlier this season, but then suffered an upper-body injury which cost him his spot with the big-club. He is back now with Erik Gudbranson out and has recorded two goals and 11 assists (13 points) in 43 games in San Antonio.

Source:
David Neal 2014-03-13T10:22:16.000Z
Alex Petrovic
Max Reinhart(C)|
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Call up / Send down
The Flames have reassigned Max Reinhart to Abbotsford (AHL).

Originally it looked like Ben Hanowski was going to be a healthy scratch tonight vs. Anaheim, but with Reinhart returning to the AHL, it appears as if Hanowski will slide back into the lineup.

Source:
Pat Steinberg 2014-03-12T15:11:03.000Z
Max Reinhart
Teemu Pulkkinen(LW)|
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Call up / Send down
The Red Wings have recalled Teemu Pulkkinen from Grand Rapids (AHL).

Pulkkinen was recalled last week, but never dressed for the Red Wings. He leads the Griffins in goals (26) and points (51), he also sits second on the team with 25 assists. Tomas Jurco left Tuesday's loss with an upper-body injury, so Pulkkinen will make his debut on Friday vs. Edmonton.

Source:
@DetroitRedWings 2014-03-12T13:20:17.000Z
Teemu Pulkkinen
Chris Mueller(RW)|FA
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Call up / Send down
The Stars have reassigned forward Chris Mueller to the Texas Stars (AHL).

Mueller was recalled for Tuesday's game because Alex Chiasson was unable to play due to personal reasons tied to the scary incident that happened with Rich Peverley on Monday. Mueller played 10:29 and was a minus-1 with two shots.

Source:
Dallas Stars 2014-03-12T12:27:54.000Z
Chris Mueller
Eric O'Dell(C)|
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Call up / Send down
The Jets recalled Eric O'Dell and he will be in the lineup tonight vs. Vancouver.

O'Dell, 23, has two goals and one assist in 14 games with the Jets this season. He 2008 second-round pick (38th overall) has also tallied 16 goals and 22 assists (38 points) in 39 games with St. John's (AHL). O'Dell will centre the Jets fourth line with John Albert out with an upper-body injury.

Source:
Scott Brown 2014-03-12T11:59:40.000Z
Eric O'Dell
Chris VandeVelde(C)|
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Call up / Send down
The Flyers have recalled center Chris Vande Velde from Adirondack (AHL).

VandeVelde has been recalled because Zac Rinaldo (upper-body) is unavailable. VandeVelde has one assist in 17 games with the Flyers. He has also recorded nine goals and 14 assists in 39 games with Adirondack.

Source:
Adam Kimelman 2014-03-11T18:26:25.000Z
Chris VandeVelde
Colton Sceviour(RW)|FA
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Call up / Send down
The Stars have recalled Colton Sceviour from Texas (AHL).

Sceviour has scored three goals with one assist in eight games with the Stars this season. While in Texas he has recorded 32 goals and 31 assists (63 points) in 54 games. His 32 goals leads the AHL while 63 points sits second on Texas and third in the AHL. He could stay with the Stars for awhile with Rich Peverley's future uncertain right now.

Source:
Mark Stepneski 2014-03-11T12:50:42.000Z
Colton Sceviour
Patrick Wey(D)|INA
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Call up / Send down
The Capitals have recalled Patrick Wey from Hershey (AHL).

Wey is a Pittsburgh native so he could get onto the Capitals blueline tonight in front of his friends and family at CONSOL Energy Center. Wey has two assists in three games with the Capitals and one goal with five assists in 25 games with Hershey.

Source:
Mike Vogel 2018-07-18T17:53:29.023Z

NHL Roster Moves

NHL roster moves are essentially transactions that alter a team’s lineup. The roster move could make the team better or worse. In some cases, the move is inconsequential. Fan favourites could leave for greener pastures. A struggling player could get sent down to the farm team. A lousy contract might get put on waivers. Even worse, players may get strategically buried on the long-term injury reserve list because they’re not worth the cap hit. The possibilities are somewhat endless.

Types of NHL Roster Moves

Don’t worry; Daily Faceoff has you covered when trying to grasp the concept of a league ruled by the complexities of the almighty salary cap. Below, we break down the strategy behind roster moves so you can get a leg up in your DFS league.

Free agent signings

NHL rosters are primarily constructed by player signings. The front office reaches out to what are referred to as “free agents.” Both the front office and the player’s agent work out the terms of a deal. How teams sign deals varies depending on what type of free agents they’re dealing with.

Rookie Deals

Rookie’s sign something called an entry-level contract which is usually capped at a certain amount of money per year. Under the NHL’s current collective bargaining agreement, the longest an entry-level contract can be signed is three years.

Restricted Free Agent Contracts

After that, a player becomes a restricted free agent (RFA). Technically, they can sign with teams outside of who they played for in the past season by accepting an offer sheet. That said, if the player’s first team extends a qualifying offer, any team competing for the player’s services will have to offer up a certain amount of compensation in the form of draft picks. Of course, that’s if the player agrees to the offer sheet and their current team doesn’t match it.

Unrestricted Free Agent Contracts

Players can become unrestricted free agents (UFA) when their current RFA deal is up and they can go wherever they want. If they sign a contract extension, they can sign for up to eight years. Alternatively, they can sign a seven-year deal if they test the open market. Fun fact: pending UFAs might be motivated to play their hearts out to secure the bag in their next deal. Keep that in mind, fantasy players.

Blockbuster trades

Trades make for some of the most interesting NHL roster moves. To this day, the infamous Patrick Roy deal still gets talked about in NHL circles. What happens in a trade is that two or maybe even three teams link up and iron out a deal. There might be deals that are referred to as “hockey trades,” meaning that both teams get something of equal value. For example, one team gives up a first-line centre for a top-pairing right-handed defenceman. Some NHL trades involve bad teams selling off their moveable assets, such as upcoming free agents, for future considerations, including draft picks or prospects.

Injuries

Depending on how badly a player gets injured, several things can happen. They can be out of a game or two, with the team opting to keep the severity of the injury private (a common pet peeve for fantasy players). Players can be put on the injury reserve for injuries that can keep them out for a calendar week. This frees up a roster spot so someone from within the team’s system, or sometimes outside of it, can come in and replace them while they’re getting back in tip-top shape. If the player needs over a week to recover after a serious injury, they will get put on long-term injury reserve.

Waivers

In typical NHL roster moves jargon, when a player goes on waivers, other teams can claim them from their current team. A player usually goes on waivers when they’re signed to a one-way deal, meaning they can’t be sent down to the minors willy-nilly like a rookie on a two-way deal. Before the player gets sent down, other teams can claim the player on the “waiver wire.” If the player isn’t claimed, they go to the minors to play in the AHL.

Call Ups

Outside of signings, player callups are one of the most popular NHL transactions. Most teams call up players when they’re performing well in the AHL or if there’s an injury on the main roster. Usually, when a player gets called up to the NHL, one gets sent down to the minors.

Contract Buyouts

Of course, you’ve probably worked with someone who’s pretty lazy. People from afar think that person is a “good fit,” but internally, everyone hates the person. Oftentimes, that person finds a way to get fired. Well, newsflash: the same thing happens in NHL dressing rooms. Sometime players who have a history of poor performance have the audacity to ask for more money come contract time. Their team has the option to buyout their contract, or in extreme cases of misconduct, their contract can be terminated. If they’re not being bought out, the front office is laughing while the player’s agent is showing themselves out of the building. For the players who are actually good and could command big bucks on the open market, teams hustle to get them signed up for a new deal. If the player hits the open market, all bets are off…. Coaching Changes

Losing a head coach that sucked at their job and replacing them with a new one can ignite a team. Historically, decent teams perform strongly when they get a new coach. For how long those “strong performances” sustain themselves over the course of a season is a whole other story.

Rules Around NHL Roster Moves

NHL rules aren’t made to be broken. If they’re written in the collective bargaining agreement (CBA), you may as well say they’re written in stone. Let’s talk about those “set in stone” rules.

Trade Deadline

Teams have a certain amount of time each season to make NHL trades and signings. The date varies from season to season, but it usually falls between the end of February and early March so that roster’s are set before the Stanley Cup playoffs begin. After the deadline, players can still be moved, but they will not be eligible to play for the rest of the regular season or playoffs. You’ll usually see prospects who are playing abroad get dealt after the deadline, if any trades are made at all.

[Editor’s note: can include link to new DFO Stanley Cup page here]

Strategy Behind NHL Roster Moves

General managers and hands-on hockey ops executives are always thinking about the future. If their team is going to miss the playoffs and it’s a good draft year, they might be inclined to sell, meaning they’ll try to offload decent players in return for cap space, draft picks and younger players. The opposite can be said for good teams. They’ll be looking to add to what they already have to make a run for the cup.

If you’re a DFS player or even in a dynasty league, you can exploit that by buying low on players who are playing for bad teams but have the potential to increase their production if they get traded to a good team. Having access to a good data set can help ease the trouble of anticipating how good a player will be going to and from a certain team.

The Salary Cap

When general managers sleep at night, they probably have nightmares about the salary cap. “The cap,” as hockey insiders like Frank Seravalli refer to it when discussing NHL transactions, dictates how much a team can spend on its roster. There’s a “floor,” meaning a team has to spend at least this much per year. Then, there’s a “ceiling” that teams can’t go over lest they pay the price in draft pick compensation and fines, amongst other things. The salary cap makes it difficult for teams to trade players with high cap hits. It also creates a market in itself for teams that want to get over the “floor” by taking on other teams’ bad contracts. In a world beyond reality, most would favour a luxury tax system like the one Major League Baseball implements.

How NHL Roster Moves Impact Sports Betting

Look, if you don’t want to put up with another year of getting beat by your co-worker’s child in fantasy, you have to put as much effort into your team as that 10-year-old weasel will. That means keeping up with the news. Changing your lineups on a daily basis. Trading players at their peak value. Buying them from others when they’re at their lowest. For the love all of things good, change your injured players out for healthy ones. If you’re a sports bettor, any NHL roster can change the money line or the total in a game, especially if a star player is hurt or a team is playing its third-string goalie. Staying in the loop will give bettors a better chance at finding an edge.