Anaheim Ducks
The Ducks reassigned centres Sam Carrick and Trevor Zegras and defenceman Jamie Drysdale.
The Coyotes made no moves this week.
The Bruins made no moves this week.
The Sabres made no moves this week.
The Flames recalled centre Adam Ruzicka from AHL Stockton. They recalled centre Matthew Phillips. They recalled defenceman Colton Poolman. They recalled defenceman Alexander Yelesin.
The Hurricanes made no moves this week.
The Blackhawks made no moves this week.
The Avalanche made no moves this week. Centre Nazem Kadri has been suspended eight games for an illegal check to the head of St. Louis’ Justin Faulk.
The Blue Jackets made no moves this week.
The Stars signed centre Tanner Kero to a two-year contract extension.
The Red Wings signed defenceman Eemil Viro to a three-year entry-level contract. They signed right winger Jonathan Berggren to a three-year entry-level contract. Left winger Mathias Bromé has signed a two-year contract in Switzerland with the National League A’s HC Davos.
The Oilers made no moves this week.
Centre Derek Roy, who last played in the NHL for Edmonton in 2015, has retired from pro hockey. Drafted in the second round, 32nd overall, in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft by the Buffalo Sabres, Roy has 524 points (189G, 335A) in 738 games, as well as 27 points (7G, 20A) in 49 playoff games, for the Buffalo Sabres (2003/04-2011/12), Dallas Stars (part of 2012/13), Vancouver Canucks (part of 2012/13), St. Louis Blues (2013/14), Nashville Predators (part of 2014/15), and Edmonton Oilers (part of 2014/15). The forward was a part of the talented nucleus of Sabres forwards that won the President’s Trophy in 2007 and made it to the Eastern Conference Final. During the stretch from 2006/07 to 2010/11, Roy had his best performances, scoring 21 goals and 63 points, 32 goals and 81 points, 28 goals and 70 points, 26 goals and 69 points, and 10 goals and 35 points in 35 games, for a five-season total of 318 points in 350 games, pretty decent for a fairly undersized forward in an era preceding today’s greater appreciation for undersized forwards. After that injury-shortened season, the Sabres began their current playoff drought and Roy’s production dwindled. Roy wound up out of the NHL by 2015 despite still producing after that point in the 30-40 point range. Roy failed to make it onto the Washington Capitals roster out of training camp in 2015, and has played the last six seasons in Europe, taking some time out as well to play for Canada at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics, the first Winter Games after the NHL stopped allowing active players to participate. Roy had career highs in his NHL career of 81 points, 32 goals, and 49 assists, all in 2008 with Buffalo. Roy, 38, finished his last NHL season with 32 points (12G, 20A) in 72 games for Nashville and Edmonton, and finished his final pro season with nine points in 12 games for the DEL’s EHC Munchen.
The Panthers made no moves this week. Centre Sam Bennett has been suspended one game for boarding Tampa Bay’s Blake Coleman.
The Kings made no moves this week.
The Wild recalled centre Connor Dewar, left winger Matt Boldy, right winger Brandon Duhaime, defencemen Calen Addison and Louis Belpedio, and goaltender Hunter Jones.
The Canadiens reassigned right winger Brendan Gallagher and goaltender Carey Price to AHL Laval for conditioning purposes. They recalled centres Alex Belzile, Laurent Dauphin, and Lukas Vejdemo; right winger Jesse Ylonen; defencemen Cale Fleury, Otto Leskinen, and Xavier Ouellet; and goaltenders Michael McNiven and Cayden Primeau.
The Predators signed centre Philip Tomasino from AHL Milwaukee.
The Devils signed goaltender Akira Schmid to a three-year entry-level contract.
The Islanders made no moves this week.
The Rangers made no moves this week.
The Senators signed centre Clark Bishop to a one-year contract extension.
The Flyers made no moves this week.
The Penguins made no moves this week.
San Jose Sharks
The Sharks made no moves this week.
The Blues made no moves this week.
The Lightning signed defenceman Jack Thompson to a three-year entry-level contract.
The Maple Leafs reassigned right winger Scott Sabourin to AHL Toronto. They signed goaltender Erik Kallgren to a two-year entry-level contract. They recalled defenceman Martin Marincin.
The Canucks made no moves this week.
Left winger Jussi Jokinen, who last played in the NHL for Vancouver in 2018, has retired from pro hockey. Drafted in the sixth round, 192nd overall, by the Dallas Stars, Jokinen has 563 points (191G, 372A) in 951 games, as well as 32 points (17G, 15A) in 54 playoff games, for the Dallas Stars (2005/06-partway through 2007/08), Tampa Bay Lightning (partway through 2007/08-partway through 2008/09), Carolina Hurricanes (partway through 2008/09-partway through 2012/13), Pittsburgh Penguins (partway through 2012/13-2013/14), Florida Panthers (2014/15-2016/17), Edmonton Oilers (part of 2017/18), Los Angeles Kings (part of 2017/18), Columbus Blue Jackets (part of 2017/18), and Vancouver Canucks (part of 2017/18). Jokinen has career highs of 30 goals and 65 points in 2010 with Carolina and 40 assists in 2016 with Florida. Jokinen was particularly well-known during his career as one of the better shootout players in the league, currently sitting 13th on the all-time shootout goal list with 37 goals on 96 shots. Jokinen finished his last NHL season with 17 points (5G, 12A) in 60 games for Edmonton, Los Angeles, Columbus, and Vancouver. He finished his final pro season with 34 points in 47 games for Karpat Oulu in the Finnish Liiga. Jokinen, 38, cites as the main reason for retiring his inability to help the teams he plays for to level he expects of himself.
Vegas Golden Knights
The Golden Knights recalled centre Cody Glass from AHL Henderson. They recalled left winger Dylan Sikura.
The Capitals recalled goaltender Zachary Fucale from AHL Hershey. They recalled centre Connor McMichael. They recalled right winger Brett Leason. They recalled defenceman Alexander Alexeyev. They recalled defenceman Paul LaDue.
The Jets recalled centre David Gustafsson from AHL Manitoba. They recalled defenceman Dylan Samberg. They recalled goaltender Mikhail Berdin. They recalled goaltender Cole Kehler. They recalled left winger Joona Luoto. They recalled defenceman Nelson Nogier.
The nominees have been named for the 2021 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy. Awarded for sportsmanship, perseverance, and dedication to hockey, each team names one nominee for the award before three finalists are named closer to award season in keeping with the other major awards. Along with likely reasons for their nominations, the following players have been nominated:
Anaheim Ducks: R-21-David Backes: Spent the bulk of the season on the taxi squad, playing only 15 games, after having formerly been a relevant two-way forward. Has continued playing despite being a more well-known example of sharp declines in physical players.
Arizona Coyotes: R-81-Phil Kessel: Rebounded offensively following a weak 2019/20 season.
Boston Bruins: D-86-Kevan Miller: Came back after missing the entire 2019/20 season
Buffalo Sabres: G-31-Dustin Tokarski: Returned to the NHL after having not played an NHL game since 2016.
Calgary Flames: L-17-Milan Lucic: Scored 23 points in 56 games, his best season since 2018 while becoming a fan favourite.
Carolina Hurricanes: C-11-Jordan Staal: Increased from 0.4 points per game to 0.72 in his second season as captain at age 32, leading Carolina to a third straight playoff appearance, the first time they had accomplished the feat since 1992, when they were still the Hartford Whalers.
Chicago Blackhawks: R-43-Andrew Shaw: Attempted to continue his career despite concussion issues before ultimately retiring.
Colorado Avalanche: R-13-Valeri Nichushkin: Has come back from draft bust status to become a solid defensive specialist.
Columbus Blue Jackets: C-26-Zac Dalpe: Has continued his career as a “AAAA” type player at 31.
Dallas Stars: C-24-Roope Hintz: Scored more than a point per game despite missing smatterings of games throughout the season due to lower-body and groin injuries.
Detroit Red Wings: D-65-Danny DeKeyser: Returned after being limited to eight games during 2019/20.
Edmonton Oilers: G-41-Mike Smith: Backstopped Edmonton back to the playoffs while rebounding from bad 2018/19 and 2019/20 seasons at age 39.
Florida Panthers: G-60-Chris Driedger: Worked his way up to being the Panthers’ starting goaltender and backstopped them to the playoffs and second place in their division after years as an NHL-AHL tweener.
Los Angeles Kings: D-3-Matt Roy: Persevered despite sustaining a concussion and winding up on the COVID-19 list.
Minnesota Wild: D-24-Matt Dumba: Performed well during the season despite constant trade rumours.
Montreal Canadiens: R-94-Corey Perry: Bounced back slightly from a bad 2019/20 season despite being on waivers at the start of the season.
Nashville Predators: G-35-Pekka Rinne: Gracefully accepted the role of second-stringer after 12 seasons as the undisputed starting goaltender.
New Jersey Devils: G-41-Scott Wedgewood: Played more than expected to for a COVID-ravaged roster after two seasons without an NHL game.
New York Islanders: C-53-Casey Cizikas: Played every game of the season for the first time after missing large parts of last season with a skate cut and, later on, a detached retina.
New York Rangers: C-43-Colin Blackwell: Emerged with 22 points in 47 games at age 27 after having totalled only 33 NHL games.
Ottawa Senators: L-13-Nick Paul: Finished his second straight season of 20 points in 56 games and wore the “A” as an alternate captain after clearing waivers three times in his career and having totalled 56 games prior to last season.
Philadelphia Flyers: L-23-Oscar Lindblom: Came back after missing most of last season due to cancer and winding up on the COVID-19 list early this season.
Pittsburgh Penguins: G-1-Casey DeSmith: Returned to well-used backup status after spending all of last season in the minors.
San Jose Sharks: L-12-Patrick Marleau: Broke Gordie Howe’s record for most games played in a career at age 41, ultimately setting the new record at 1779 games.
St. Louis Blues: R-91-Vladimir Tarasenko: Returned during this season after missing most of last season with shoulder injuries.
Tampa Bay Lightning: C-91-Steven Stamkos: Continued to produce offence at a high level this season despite missing the latter chunk of last season and large portions of this season with injuries, including a stint on the COVID-19 list.
Toronto Maple Leafs: G-36-Jack Campbell: Has taken the reins at age 29 as the undisputed starting goaltender going forward in the volatile Toronto market, winning 11 straight games.
Vancouver Canucks: C-64-Tyler Motte: Nominated in recognition of his open struggles with depression and anxiety and his outspokenness on mental health issues.
Vegas Golden Knights: G-29-Marc-Andre Fleury: Has returned to being the main starter after being played less during last season.
Washington Capitals: D-33-Zdeno Chara: By far the oldest player in the NHL at age 44, playing his first season with a new team.
Winnipeg Jets: G-1-Eric Comrie: Has continued to work hard in practices and the minors, through being claimed off waivers by, and then from, New Jersey, not playing for the Jets themselves.
