NHL Transactions & Roster Moves

Casey Nelson(RD)|FA
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Sabres have recalled Casey Nelson from Rochester (AHL).

Nelson, 24, has scored four goals with five assists (nine points) in 27 games with Rochester this season. He appeared in eight games with the Sabres earlier this season, but failed to record a point. He could draw into the lineup on Saturday because Jake McCabe is likely out due to a shoulder injury.

Source:
Paul Hamilton 2017-01-21T11:22:52.000Z
Casey Nelson
Corey Tropp(RW)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Ducks recalled Corey Tropp from San Diego (AHL).

Tropp,27, has scored eight goals and 21 assists (29 points) in 32 games with San Diego this season. He should make his Ducks’ debut on Saturday with Jakob Silfverberg not playing. Tropp has 27 points (6G / 21A) in 148 career NHL games, with the Sabres and Blue Jackets.

Source:
Anaheim Ducks 2017-01-21T09:51:11.000Z
Corey Tropp
Julius Honka(RD)|FA
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Stars have recalled Julius Honka from Texas (AHL).

Honka, 21, had three assists in eight games with the Stars earlier this season. The 2014 No.14 pick is offensively gifted and comes back to the Stars with 21 points (5G / 16A) in 30 games with Texas. He has been recalled to replace Johnny Oduya, who has been placed on IR.

Source:
Mark Stepneski 2017-01-20T14:54:55.000Z
Julius Honka
Christian Fischer(RW)|FA
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Coyotes have recalled Christian Fischer from Tucson (AHL).

Fischer, 19, was a second round pick (No. 32 overall) in 2015 and this is his first NHL call-up. Fischer has picked up 32 points (16G / 16A) in 31 games in his first AHL season after posting 90 points (40G / 50A) in 66 games with the Windsor Spitfires (OHL) last year.

Source:
Arizona Coyotes 2017-01-20T14:50:27.000Z
Christian Fischer
Laurent Dauphin(C)|ARI
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Coyotes have reassigned Laurent Dauphin to Tucson (AHL).

Dauphin appeared in four games and was a healthy scratch for two during this call-up. Overall, he has two goals and one assist in 24 games with the Coyotes this season. The 21-year-old will go back to Tucson, where he has collected 11 points (5G / 6A) in 11 games this season.

Source:
Arizona Coyotes 2017-01-20T14:48:52.000Z
Laurent Dauphin
Pheonix Copley(G)|LAK
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Blues have recalled Pheonix Copley from Chicago (AHL).

Copley, 25, has gone 11-4-1 with a 2.32 GAA and .920 SV% in 18 games with Chicago this season. The Blues’ No.1 Jake Allen has struggled mightily recently, so they will leave him in St. Louis when the Blues depart for Winnipeg for Saturday’s game. The Blues did not name a starter for Saturday, so the North Pole, Alaska native could make his first career NHL start.

Source:
Lou Korac 2017-01-20T14:44:36.000Z
Pheonix Copley
Markus Hannikainen(LW)|FA
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Blue Jackets have recalled Markus Hannikainen from Cleveland (AHL).

Hannikainen, 23, has no points in five games with the Blue Jackets this season. He has spent the majority of the year with the Monsters, where he registered nine goals and five assists (14 points) in 25 AHL games. Hannikainen will replace Matt Calvert in the lineup.

Source:
@BlueJacketsPR 2017-01-20T14:34:16.000Z
Markus Hannikainen
Andrey Pedan(D)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Canucks have sent Andrey Pedan to Utica (AHL).

Pedan, 23, never appeared in a game during his call-up and will swap places with Jordan Subban as he heads back to Utica. Pedan has two goals and one assist (three points) in 22 games with Utica.

Source:
Irfaan Gaffar 2017-01-19T16:17:12.000Z
Andrey Pedan
Jordan Subban(D)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Canucks have recalled Jordan Subban from Utica (AHL).

Subban, 21, was a fourth round pick in 2013 (115th overall) and this is his first NHL call-up. The brother of PK and Malcolm has picked up nine goals and 13 assists (22 points) in 34 games with Utica this season and could make his NHL debut this weekend.

Source:
Josh Clipperton 2017-01-19T16:15:50.000Z
Jordan Subban
Casey Bailey(C)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Senators have recalled Casey Bailey from Binghamton (AHL).

Bailey has failed to record a point in four games with Ottawa this season. During his time in Binghamton, the 25-year-old has scored 10 goals with five assists (15 points) in 33 games.

Source:
Bruce Garrioch 2017-01-19T16:08:18.000Z
Casey Bailey
Michael Leighton(G)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Hurricanes have recalled Michael Leighton from Charlotte (AHL).

Leighton went down to get some playing time with Charlotte, because no one but Cam Ward is seeing time in Carolina. Leighton will return as the Hurricanes’ backup on Friday.

Source:
Cory Lavalette 2017-01-19T12:37:21.000Z
Michael Leighton
Denis Malgin(C)|FA
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Panthers have sent Denis Malgin to Springfield (AHL).

Malgin has often served as a healthy scratch over the last month and has collected just eight points (4G / 4A) in 39 games this season. The Panthers want to get Malgin more playing time, so he will head to Springfield for the first time this season.

Source:
Florida Panthers 2017-01-19T11:04:53.000Z
Denis Malgin
Reto Berra(G)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Panthers have recalled Reto Berra from Springfield (AHL).

Berra has gone 9-8-2 with a 2.24 GAA and .917 SV% in 20 games with Springfield this season. Berra’s recall suggests that there is something wrong with either Roberto Luongo or James Reimer, so expect an update later today. Berra has posted a career .906 SV% in 64 NHL games with the Flames and Avalanche.

Source:
Florida Panthers 2017-01-19T10:53:11.000Z
Reto Berra
Spencer Martin(G)|FA
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Avalanche have recalled Spencer Martin from San Antonio (AHL).

Martin, 21, has gone 15-9-0 with a 2.62 GAA and .915 SV% in 27 games with the Rampage this season. He has spent a lot of time with the Avalanche, but has never appeared in an NHL game. With Semyon Varlamov out through the All-Star break, Martin is expected to see some playing time this time around.

Source:
@Avalanche 2017-01-18T14:39:52.000Z
Spencer Martin
Jake Dotchin(RD)|FA
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Lightning have recalled Jake Dotchin from Syracuse (AHL).

Dotchin, 22, was a sixth round pick of the Lightning in 2012 and he could be making his NHL debut on Tuesday. With Victor Hedman sick, Dotchin has joined the Lightning in Anaheim after scoring three goals with nine assists and 77 PIMS in 33 games with Syracuse.

Source:
Erik Erlendsson 2017-01-17T13:38:52.000Z
Jake Dotchin
Alex Nedeljkovic(G)|PIT
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Hurricanes have recalled Alex Nedeljkovic from Charlotte (AHL).

Nedeljkovic, 21, was a second round pick (No. 37 overall) in 2014 and this is his first NHL call-up. Cam Ward has started 19 games in a row, so either Nedeljkovic is up to serve as his backup or so the Hurricanes can get a look at him at the NHL level. The American born netminder has gone 5-12-0 with a 3.30 GAA and .884 SV% with Charlotte and 2-0-0 with 2.83 GAA and.921 SV% in a brief stint with the Florida Everblades (ECHL).

Source:
Michael Smith 2017-01-17T11:36:35.000Z
Alex Nedeljkovic
Ondrej Pavelec(G)|FA
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Jets have recalled Ondrej Pavelec from Manitoba (AHL).

The Jets’ duo of Connor Hellebuyck and Michael Hutchinson have combined for the league’s fifth worst goals against average (3.06). The Jets have recalled Pavelec in an attempt to stop the bleeding and provide the crease with some stability. the 29-year-old has gone 8-7-2 with a 2.78 GAA and .917 SV% in 18 games with Manitoba this season. In 33 games with the Jets last year, Pavelec went 13-13-4 with a 2.78 GAA and .904 SV%.

Source:
Scott Billeck 2017-01-17T11:15:03.000Z
Ondrej Pavelec

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.