NHL Hockey Player News

Nick Johnson(RW)|INA
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The Bruins have recalled Nick Johnson from Providence (AHL) on an emergency basis.

Johnson has been recalled and will play tonight in Ottawa after Carl Soderberg suffered an injury last night and did not travel to Ottawa. In seven games with the Bruins, Johnson has averaged 9:44 TOI with no points and a minus-3 rating.

Source:
Steve Conroy 2018-07-18T17:53:28.028Z
Joacim Eriksson(G)|INA
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The Canucks have recalled Joacim Eriksson from Utica (AHL).

Eriksson was a seventh round pick of the Flyers in 2008 and has yet to play in an NHL game. He spent the last five seasons in Sweden but has started his North American hockey career 8-10-1 with a 2.77 GAA and .907 SV% with Utica. His suggests that Roberto Luongo will miss some time.

Source:
Elliotte Friedman 2018-07-18T17:53:21.235Z
Drew Shore(C)|
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The Panthers have recalled Drew Shore from San Antonio (AHL).

Shore has no points in two games with Florida this season. With San Antonio he has yet to record a goal but has 15 assists in 28 games. His recall suggests that Scottie Upshall (upper-body) will not play tonight.

Source:
Harvey Fialkov 2013-12-27T11:09:43.000Z
Drew Shore
Zach Boychuk(C)|
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The Hurricanes have recalled forward Zach Boychuk from Charlotte (AHL).

This marks the second NHL recall of the season for Boychuk, 24, who earned an assist during his only NHL game this season, a 5-3 Carolina victory against San Jose on December 6. He has appeared in 29 games with Charlotte this season, and leads the Checkers in goals (14) and points (27).

Source:
Terrell Williams 2013-12-27T10:23:22.000Z
Zach Boychuk
Niklas Svedberg(G)|
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The Bruins have recalled goaltender Niklas Svedberg from Providence (AHL).

Svedberg has appeared in 20 games for the Providence this season, racking up an 11-5-3 record with a 2.91 GAA, .907 SV% and one shutout.? The 24-year-old netminder has played in a total of 68 games for Providence since joining the team in 2012, earning a career 48-13-5 AHL record. The 2012-13 campaign with the P-Bruins saw Svedberg win 37 games (2nd in the AHL) with a 2.17 GAA (5th), .925 SV% (3rd) and four shutouts to earn himself the Aldege “Baz” Bastien Memorial Award, which is given annually to the AHL’s outstanding goaltender.

Source:
Boston Bruins 2013-12-27T10:03:32.000Z
Niklas Svedberg
Stephane Veilleux(LW)|
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The Wild have recalled Stephane Veilleux from Iowa (AHL).

With Zach Parise nursing a lower-body injury, the Wild have recalled Veilleux, who skated in his 11th game this season on Monday. He has no points and a minus-5 rating this season.

Source:
@mnwild 2013-12-27T09:43:41.000Z
Stephane Veilleux
Dmitrij Jaskin(RW)|FA
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The Blues recalled Dmitrij Jaskin and he will make his season debut tonight.

Jaskin was the 41st overall pick in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft and is in his first season with the Chicago Wolves (AHL). In 20 games he has 17 points (9G / 8A) and is expected to play top-6 minutes tonight with Alex Steen sidelined. Jaskin, 20, played in two NHL games with the Blues last season.

Source:
Jeremy Rutherford 2013-12-23T13:43:45.000Z
Dmitrij Jaskin
Jordin Tootoo(RW)|
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The Red Wings have sent Jordin Tootoo back to Grand Rapids.

Tootoo dressed in two games during his call-up and recorded one assist on Saturday. He provided some much needed energy for the Red Wings, but with Gustav Nyquist returning to the lineup tonight, Tootoo has bee reassigned.

Source:
Ansar Khan 2013-12-23T13:33:53.000Z
Jordin Tootoo
Alex Petrovic(RD)|DAL
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The Panthers have recalled Alex Petrovic from San Antonio (AHL).

Petrovic was the 36th overall pick in 2010. The 6-foot-4 defenseman skated in his first six NHL games with the Panthers last year. In 30 games with San Antonio this season, Petrovic has two goals and 11 points with a plus-6 rating.

Source:
Erin Brown 2013-12-23T13:21:21.000Z
Alex Petrovic
Stephane Veilleux(LW)|
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Call up / Send down
The Minnesota Wild have recalled forward Stephane Veilleux from the Iowa Wild (AHL).

Veilleux has skated in 10 games with Minnesota this season and has tallied 101 points (46-55=101) and 323 penalty minutes (PIM) in 470 NHL games with Minnesota, Tampa Bay and New Jersey. He ranks fifth in Wild history in hits (407), eighth in games played (392), ninth in PIM (275) and 11th in shots (565).

Source:
Minnesota Wild 2013-12-23T11:19:58.000Z
Stephane Veilleux
Erik Haula(LW)|NJD
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The Wild have reassigned forward Erik Haula to Iowa (AHL).

Haula has collected two assists and a plus-3 rating in 10 games with Minnesota this season. The 5-foot-11, 192-pound has tallied 14 points (7G / 7A) in 20 games with Iowa this season. The 22-year-old ranks tied for first on the team with four power-play goals, and third in goals and scoring.

Source:
Minnesota Wild 2013-12-23T11:19:08.000Z
Erik Haula
Brett Bulmer(RW)|
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he Minnesota Wild has reassigned forward Brett Bulmer to the Iowa Wild (AHL).

Bulmer totalled six shots and two PIMs in four games with Minnesota after being recalled December 12. The 21-year-old has recorded 12 points (9G / 3A), 20 PIM and three power-play goals in 21 games with Iowa this season.

Source:
Minnesota Wild 2013-12-20T13:46:55.000Z
Brett Bulmer
Kent Simpson(G)|
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The Blackhawks have assigned Kent Simpson to Rockford (AHL).

Simpson only 20 minutes of NHL action while with the Blackhawks. He relieved Antti Raanta on December 14, he allowed two goals on seven shots.

Source:
Chris Kuc 2013-12-19T18:13:00.000Z
Kent Simpson
Jason LaBarbera(G)|
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The Blackhawks have recalled Jason LaBarbera from Rockford (AHL).

LaBarbera was acquired from the Oilers on December 14 and will likely serve as Antti Raanta's backup until Corey Crawford is healthy. Even when Crawford is healthy LaBarbera could stay with the club if they want Raanta to get more playing time in Rockford.

Source:
Chris Kuc 2013-12-19T18:10:41.000Z
Jason LaBarbera
Johan Gustafsson(G)|
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The Wild have recalled Johan Gustafsson from Iowa (AHL).

With Josh Harding going on injured reserve, Gustafsson has been recalled to serve as Niklas Backstrom's backup while Harding is out. Gustafsson has never played a game in the NHL and is in his first season with Iowa. He is 4-4-0 with a 2.95 GAA and .898 SV% in nine games.

Source:
Michael Russo 2013-12-19T09:57:30.000Z
Johan Gustafsson

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.