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NHL Transactions & Roster Moves

John Gibson(G)|DET
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Ducks have sent John Gibson to Norfolk (AHL).

Gibson has been sidelined with a groin injury since October 30th. Since then, the Ducks signed Ilya Bryzgalov to be Frederik Andersen’s backup, which pushes Gibson back to the minors. Whether or not he gets back to the NHL this season will be decided on how he performs in Norfolk and how Bryz does with Anaheim. Regardless, returning to the minors is probably best for the 21-year-olds development.

Source:
Eric Stephens 2014-12-17T18:44:09.000Z
John Gibson
Jeff Zatkoff(G)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Penguins have recalled goaltender Jeff Zatkoff form Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (AHL).

The Penguins starter Marc-Andre Fleury is reportedly ill and is being tested for mumps. With Fleury likely out tomorrow, Zatkoff has been recalled and should be Thomas Greiss’ back vs. the Avalanche. Zatkoff, 27, has played in 15 AHL games with WBS this season, posting a 9-5-1 record, 1.89 GAA and a .918 SV% with one shutout. His GAA ranks fifth in the AHL.

Source:
Pittsburgh Penguins 2014-12-17T17:34:54.000Z
Jeff Zatkoff
John Curry(G)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Wild have officially recalled John Curry from Iowa (AHL).

Curry was pulled off of the ice from his start with Iowa last night. He has been recalled as insurance for Niklas Backstrom tonight, but head coach Mike Yeo is hoping that Backstrom will feel well enough to start. If he is not, Curry will go.

Source:
Chad Graff 2014-12-17T13:10:57.000Z
John Curry
Emerson Etem(RW)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Ducks have recalled Emerson Etem from Norfolk (AHL).

Etem, 22, has been recalled and will be in the lineup on Thursday. He will be filling in for Kyle Palmieri, who suffered a shoulder injury on Tuesday and will miss the next two games. Etem has four points (2G / 2A) in 21 games with the Ducks this season. In a short time with Norfolk, he collected three goals in five games.

Source:
Eric Stephens 2014-12-17T12:33:40.000Z
Emerson Etem
Mikhail Grigorenko(C)|FA
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Sabres have sent Mikhail Grigorenko back to Rochester (AHL).

Grigorenko was a minus-1 in 16:42 in his season debut on Tuesday. The Sabres are off until Saturday, so there is a good chance that Torrey Mitchell will be ready to return to the lineup. If not, expect Grigorenko to be recalled again.

Source:
@BuffaloSabres 2014-12-17T11:21:46.000Z
Mikhail Grigorenko
Griffin Reinhart(D)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Islanders have sent Griffin Reinhart back to Bridgeport (AHL).

Reinhart had one assist and a plus-2 rating in five games during his recall. His return to the AHL suggests that either Johnny Boychuk or Travis Hamonic will be ready to go on Friday in Detroit.

Source:
@NYIslanders 2014-12-17T10:18:16.000Z
Griffin Reinhart
Brandon Gormley(D)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Coyotes have assigned Brandon Gormley to Portland (AHL).

Gormley has been sidelined with a lower-body injury since November 16th. He heads back to the AHL to get back up to speed, but could be back with the Coyotes in the near future. He had one goal in six games before getting hurt.

Source:
Arizona Coyotes 2014-12-17T10:15:52.000Z
Brandon Gormley
Scott Darling(G)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Blackhawks have sent Scott Darling back to Rockford (AHL).

Darling was great during his call-up. He started four straight games, going 3-1-0 with a 1.97 GAA and .939 SV%. Antti Raanta started the last two and Corey Crawford is on the verge of returning to the lineup, so Darling heads back to the AHL for the time being.

Source:
Tracey Myers 2014-12-17T10:13:50.000Z
Scott Darling
Tim Sestito(C)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Devils have sent Tim Sestito back to Albany (AHL).

Sestito played 11:04 and was a minus-1 in Monday’s game, but has been back to the AHL for now. His return to Albany suggests that one of the Devils injured forwards will be back on Wednesday.

Source:
Tom Gulitti 2014-12-16T14:10:07.000Z
Tim Sestito
Kerby Rychel(LW)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Blue Jackets have sent Kerby Rychel back to Springfield (AHL).

Rychel played 10:10 and did not record a point in his only game during his most recent call-up. With the addition of Jeremy Morin on Monday and Fedor Tyutin ready to be activated from IR, Rychel has been squeezed back to the AHL.

Source:
Shawn Mitchell 2014-12-16T11:43:00.000Z
Kerby Rychel
Mikhail Grigorenko(C)|FA
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Sabres have recalled Mikhail Grigorenko from Rochester (AHL).

Grigorenko, 20, has recorded seven goals and 12 assists (19 points) in 27 games with Rochester this season. He has struggled to find his way in his first two attempts to stick with the Sabres, recording just eight points (3G / 5A) in 43 games. The 2012 first rounder (12th overall) will look to impress during his recall so he doesn’t go back to the minors.

Source:
Mike Harrington 2014-12-16T10:19:58.000Z
Mikhail Grigorenko
Andrei Vasilevskiy(G)|TBL
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Lightning have recalled Andrei Vasilevskiy from Syracuse (AHL).

Ben Bishop suffered a lower-body injury in Monday’s loss to the Penguins, so Vasilevskiy, 20, has been recalled and is expected to back-up Evgeni Nabokov tonight. Vasilevskiy was the 19th overall pick in 2012 and he has gone 8-3-3 with a 2.34 GAA and .918 SV% with Syracuse—this is his first season in North America.

Source:
Bryan Burns 2014-12-16T10:16:39.000Z
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Ilya Bryzgalov(G)|FA
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Ducks have recalled Ilya Bryzgalov from his conditioning stint with Norfolk (AHL).

Bryzgalov went 1-1-0 with a 2.53 GAA and .915 SV% in his two game conditioning stint with Norfolk. With Bryzgalov being recalled, Jason LaBarbera has been placed on waivers. Bryzgalov could make his season debut on Tuesday in Toronto.

Source:
@AnaheimDucks 2014-12-15T12:02:14.000Z
Ilya Bryzgalov
Dany Heatley(LW)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Ducks have recalled Dany Heatley from his Long-Term Injury Conditioning Loan with Norfolk (AHL).

Heatley played two games with Norfolk, he failed to record a point and had a minus-3 rating. Heatly was skating on as the fourth forward on the Ducks third line this morning, so there is no guarantee that he will be in the lineup on Tuesday.

Source:
@AnaheimDucks 2014-12-15T12:00:18.000Z
Dany Heatley
Tim Sestito(C)|
Call up / Send down
Call up / Send down
The Devils have recalled Tim Sestito from Albany (AHL).

Sestito, 30, is off to the best of his AHL career having recorded 13 points (6G / 7A) in 26 games this season. He could be in the lineup tonight for Mike Cammalleri who is out with a bone bruise. Sestito has six assists in 86 career NHL games.

Source:
Tom Gulitti 2014-12-15T10:52:53.000Z
Tim Sestito

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.