NHL Hockey Player News

Zach Trotman(D)|
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The Bruins have recalled Zach Trotman from Providence (AHL).

Trotman, 24, was the final pick in the 2010 NHL Draft. The 6-foot-3, 219 lbs. defenseman is a physical presence on the back-end, but has limited offensive upside. He along with Joe Morrow will fill-in on the Bruins blueline as they try to fill the massive hole left by Zdeno Chara's knee injury.

Source:
Mark Divver 2014-10-24T09:59:01.000Z
Zach Trotman
Anders Lee(LW)|NYI
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The Islanders recalled Anders Lee from Bridgeport (AHL)

Lee, 24, has three goals and two assists in five games with Bridgeport so far this season. He was close to making the Islanders out of camp, but it didn't take him long to get recalled. He had 14 points (9G / 5A) in 22 games with the Isles last season. There is a good chance he will centre the Islanders second line with Brock Nelson and either Ryan Strome or Nikolai Kulemin on his wing tonight.

Source:
Brett Cyrgalis 2014-10-23T10:44:24.000Z
Anders Lee
Brody Sutter(C)|FA
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The Hurricanes have recalled Brody Sutter from Charlotte (AHL).

Sutter, 23, made his NHL debut last Thursday, in a 2-1 shootout loss to the Rangers. The 2011 seventh round pick is in his third full professional season and has one goal and a minus-1 rating in five games with Charlotte.

Source:
Terrell WIlliams 2014-10-22T17:30:42.000Z
Brody Sutter
Scott Darling(G)|
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The Blackhawks have recalled Scott Darling from Rockford (AHL).

Corey Crawford is day-to-day with an upper-body injury so Darling, 25, has been recalled to back-up Antti Raanta tonight vs. Philadelphia. Darling is 2-0-0 with a 1.44 GAA and .948 SV% in two starts with the IceHogs (AHL) this season.

Source:
@ESPNChiHawks 2014-10-21T12:29:42.000Z
Scott Darling
Mike Blunden(RW)|
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The Lightning have recalled Michael Blunden from Syracuse (AHL).

Ryan Callahan was injured in Monday's game, so recalling Blunden likely means that Callahan will not play on Tuesday vs. the Flames. Blunden has two goals and one assist in four games with Syracuse in his first year with the Lightning organization.

Source:
Guillaume Lefrançois 2014-10-21T11:45:26.000Z
Mike Blunden
Derrick Pouliot(LD)|TBL
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The Penguins assign Derrick Pouliot to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (AHL).

Pouliot, 20, was selected eight overall by the Penguins in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. The young defenseman has been rehabbing after offseason shoulder surgery and his return to the AHL likely means that he is ready to get back to playing hockey. This will be his first year of professional hockey after wrapping up his fourth year of juniors with 70 points (17G / 53A) in 58 games in 2013-14.

Source:
Pittsburgh Penguins 2014-10-21T10:25:36.000Z
Derrick Pouliot
Tom Wilson(RW)|WAS
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The Capitals have reassigned Tom Wilson (ankle) to Hershey (AHL).

Wilson is nearly ready to return after having offseason ankle surgery. He will head to the Hershey Bears where he should practice throughout the week and likely play this weekend. He should be back with the Capitals really soon after playing 82 games with them in his rookie season.

Source:
Mike Vogel 2014-10-20T15:52:12.000Z
Tom Wilson
John Gibson(G)|ANA
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The Ducks have recalled John Gibson from Norfolk (AHL).

As expected, the Ducks bring Gibson back to the NHL after spending the weekend getting some playing time with Norfolk. He went 1-1-0 with a 3.05 GAA and .902 SV% in two AHL starts, but with no back-to-backs this week and Freddie Andersen playing great, there is no telling when his next start might be.

Source:
Dhiren Mahiban 2014-10-20T13:06:43.000Z
John Gibson
Petteri Lindbohm(D)|FA
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The Blues have assigned Petteri Lindbohm to Chicago (AHL).

Lindbohm, 21, made his NHL debut on Sunday. He played 14:05 and recorded four shots, two hits and a minus-1 rating while the Blues were shutout. With Lindbohm going back to Chicago, expect Jordan Leopold be back in the lineup on Thursday.

Source:
Lou Korac 2014-10-20T11:46:04.000Z
Petteri Lindbohm
Petr Mrazek(G)|DET
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The Red Wings have reassigned Petr Mrazek to Grand Rapids (AHL).

Mrazek was recalled to serve as the backup to Jonas Gustavsson on Saturday because Jimmy Howard was dealing with a minor groin injury. Returning Mrazek to Grand Rapids is a good sign that Howard is fine and will be available for Tuesday's matchup with the Habs.

Source:
John Keating 2014-10-20T11:33:54.000Z
Petr Mrazek
Seth Griffith(C)|EDM
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The Bruins have recalled Seth Griffith from Providence (AHL).

The Bruins sent Griffith down to play over the weekend but have recalled him to begin the week. He has three points (2G / 1A) in three games with Providence, but has yet to break onto the score sheet in three games with Boston.

Source:
Joe Haggerty 2014-10-20T10:04:05.000Z
Seth Griffith
Anton Forsberg(G)|OTT
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The Blue Jackets have recalled rookie goaltender Anton Forsberg from Springfield (AHL).

Forsberg, 21, was the 188th overall pick in 2011. He has been recalled to backup Sergei Bobrovsky after Curtis McElhinney was placed on IR with a head/neck injury. Forsberg is in his first full pro year in North America and he went 1-2-0 with a 2.36 GAA and .921 SV% in his first three AHL starts of the season.

Source:
Shawn Mitchell 2014-10-20T10:00:38.000Z
Anton Forsberg
Jonathan Drouin(LW)|COL
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The Lightning recalled Jonathan Drouin from Syracuse (AHL).

The third overall pick in the 2013 draft, Drouin, 19, had a goal, two assists and a plus-4 rating in his brief conditioning stint with Syracuse. He was assigned to Syracuse on Thursday to receive more live action to complete his recovery from a slight fracture in his right thumb sustained in September. The Lightning are in action on Monday night and it will likely be Drouin's NHL debut.

Source:
Andrew Astleford 2014-10-20T09:56:05.000Z
Jonathan Drouin
Jyrki Jokipakka(D)|
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The Stars have recalled Jyrki Jokipakka from Texas (AHL).

Jokipakka, 23, was the 195th overall pick in 2011. He has one goal in three games with Texas this season and had 21 points (5G / 16A) in 68 games last season. He will take Patrik Nemeth's spot.

Source:
Mike Heika 2014-10-19T17:43:56.000Z
Jyrki Jokipakka

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.