NHL Transactions & Roster Moves

Ilya Samsonov(G)|FA
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Send Down
The Capitals have reassigned Ilya Samsonov to Hershey (AHL).

Don't panic, Samsonov isn't going anywhere. This is a cap move to allow the Capitals to bring up Travis Boyd to dress as a 12th forward on Saturday. Samsonov probably won't even leave the team and Vitek Vanecek will be sent down and Samsonov will be "recalled" when either Nic Dowd or Carl Hagelin are healthy.

Source:
Washington Capitals 2019-11-16T17:13:46.029Z
Ilya Samsonov
Vitek Vanecek(G)|UTA
Call Up
Call Up
The Capitals have recalled Vitek Vanecek from Hershey (AHL).

This is a salary cap related move. The Capitals need a forward because Nic Dowd and Carl Hagelin are out, so Vanecek comes up and the higher-paid Ilya Samsonov heads to the AHL for the game. The move opened up enough cap space for Travis Boyd to be called up. Samsonov will likely swap spots with Vanecek next week.

Source:
Washington Capitals 2019-11-16T17:12:09.837Z
Vitek Vanecek
Travis Boyd(C)|TOR
Call Up
Call Up
The Capitals have recalled Travis Boyd from Hershey (AHL).

Washington played with 11 forwards on Friday but Boyd comes up to dress as the 12th forward on Saturday. He has split his time between the NHL and AHL, totalling four assists in six games with the Capitals and six points (4G / 2A) in four games with the Bears. Tyler Lewington went down to Hershey to make room for Boyd.

Source:
Washington Capitals 2019-11-16T17:10:16.595Z
Travis Boyd
Ryan Poehling(C)|ANA
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Poehling has been reassigned to Laval (AHL).

Poehling played in four straight games but was sent back before Friday's game in Washington. Jordan Weal will take the spot that was previously filled by Poehling. He returns to the AHL, where he has collected three goals and two assists (five points) in 14 games.

Source:
Stephen Whyno 2019-11-15T19:44:43.986Z
Ryan Poehling
Colton White(D)|NJD
Call Up
Call Up
The Devils have recalled Colton White from Binghamton (AHL).

White was a fourth-round pick in 2015 and appeared in three NHL games with the Devils last season. The 22-year-old defenseman, who has three assists in 15 AHL games this season, could make his season debut on Friday night. Sami Vatanen (upper-body) was moved to IR to make room for White.

Source:
@NJDevils 2019-11-15T15:48:00.423Z
Colton White
Rasmus Asplund(C)|FA
Call Up
Call Up
The Sabres have recalled Rasmus Asplund from Rochester (AHL).

There's no indication of who Asplund might be coming up for, but the 2016 second-round pick (No.33 overall) has collected eight points (1G / 7A) in 13 AHL games this season. He has not appeared in an NHL game to-date.

Source:
Joe Yerdon 2019-11-15T15:35:36.867Z
Rasmus Asplund
Trent Frederic(C)|EDM
Call Up
Call Up
The Bruins recalled Trent Frederic from Providence (AHL).

Frederic will likely make his season debut on Friday night because Zach Senyshyn is out for at least four weeks with a lower-body injury. Frederic, who has five assists in 15 AHL games this season, failed to register a single point in 15 games with Boston in 2018-19.

Source:
Boston Bruins 2019-11-15T15:34:03.987Z
Trent Frederic
Dalton Prout(D)|FA
Call Up
Call Up
The Sharks have recalled Dalton Prout from his conditioning stint with San Jose (AHL).

Prout had just one assist during his two-game conditioning stint. Prout has suited up in just one game with the Sharks this season but was sidelined by an upper-body injury prior to his conditioning stint.

Source:
Kevin Kurz 2019-11-14T19:26:36.986Z
Dalton Prout
Joe Hicketts(D)|LAK
Call Up
Call Up
The Red Wings have recalled Joe Hicketts from Grand Rapids (AHL).

In addition to calling up Jonathan Ericsson on Wednesday, Hicketts will also join the Red Wings in California. Hicketts had one assist in four games with the Red Wings earlier in the season and leads all Griffins defensemen with nine points (0G / 9A) in 11 AHL games.

Source:
Ansar Khan 2019-11-14T18:04:31.747Z
Joe Hicketts
Rhett Gardner(C)|FA
Call Up
Call Up
The Stars have recalled Rhett Gardner from Texas (AHL).

Gardner did not have a point in seven games with the Stars earlier in the year and has picked up six points (3G / 3A) in nine games with Texas. His call-up suggests that Cogliano will not play on Thursday after suffering an injury in Calgary on Wednesday.

Source:
Sean Shapiro 2019-11-14T17:42:14.271Z
Rhett Gardner
Jonathan Ericsson(LD)|FA
Call Up
Call Up
The Red Wings have recalled Jonathan Ericsson from Grand Rapids (AHL).

With Danny DeKeyser, Trevor Daley and now Patrik Nemeth injury, Ericsson makes his return to the NHL. Ericsson was assigned to the Griffins after clearing waivers on October 23rd and has picked up two assists in 10 AHL games. He may replace Dylan McIlrath or Alex Biega and make his season debut in Los Angeles.

Source:
Detroit Red Wings 2019-11-14T16:17:33.626Z
Jonathan Ericsson
Zack MacEwen(RW)|OTT
Call Up
Call Up
The Canucks have recalled Zack MacEwen from Utica (AHL).

MacEwen comes up because Brandon Sutter was hurt early in Tuesday's win over the Predators. MacEwen has just one assist in four career NHL games and will likely make his season debut on Thursday. The 23-year-old has eight points (3G / 5A) in 13 games with Utica this season.

Source:
Rick Dhaliwal 2019-11-13T19:51:36.837Z
Zack MacEwen
Tyler Graovac(C)|FA
Call Up
Call Up
The Canucks have recalled Tyler Graovac from Utica (AHL).

With Jay Beagle missing Tuesday's game, Graovac's call-up suggests that he will replace Beagle in the lineup on Thursday. Graovac, who has nine points (7G / 2A) in 62 career NHL games, has one goal in six AHL games this season.

Source:
Rick Dhaliwal 2019-11-13T19:48:37.578Z
Tyler Graovac
Klim Kostin(C)|FA
Call Up
Call Up
The Blues have recalled Klim Kostin from San Antonio (AHL).

Kostin was selected in the first round (No.31 overall) in 2017 and is one of the Blues' top prospects. The 20-year-old forward has scored three goals with five assists (eight points) in 14 AHL games this season and he is poised to make his NHL debut in Columbus on Friday.

Source:
Jeremy Rutherford 2019-11-13T16:57:12.472Z
Klim Kostin
Curtis Lazar(C)|EDM
Call Up
Call Up
The Sabres have recalled Curtis Lazar from Rochester (AHL).

With Vladimir Sobotka out for at least four weeks, Lazar makes his return to the NHL. The 24-year-old currently ranks second on the Americans (AHL) in points, picking up four goals and five assists (nine points) in 11 games. He has not suited up for Buffalo yet but comes up with 51 points (15G / 36A) in 246 career NHL games.

Source:
Bill Hoppe 2019-11-13T15:43:09.427Z
Curtis Lazar

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.