The San Jose Sharks announced today that forward Pavol Regenda has been reassigned to the club’s AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda. Head coach Ryan Warsofsky told the media, including San Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng, that veteran forward Jeff Skinner will be activated off of injured reserve and dressed for the Sharks’ game Friday in Dallas against the Stars.
Regenda was recalled on Monday when the Sharks placed Vincent Desharnais on injured reserve. He ended up playing in both of the Sharks’ games during his time on their NHL roster, and he found a way to make his mark in each.
Regenda scored a power play goal early in the Sharks’ Monday win over the Utah Mammoth. Regenda scored a similar goal late in the Sharks’ 7-1 defeat at the hands of the Washington Capitals on Wednesday. Regenda averaged 12:43 time on ice per game in this two-game recall, although just 8:56 of that average came at even strength. Regenda averaged nearly four minutes per game on the power play.
While Regenda would surely have liked for his recall to extend a little bit longer, it’s hard to classify his most recent stay on the NHL roster as anything other than a success due to his goal-scoring. The 25-year-old has been a productive AHL player since crossing the Atlantic to sign with the Anaheim Ducks in 2022.
The former Slovak Extraliga star has scored 107 points in 195 career AHL games, a 40-point 72-game scoring pace. Standing 6’3″, 219 pounds, Regenda offers size and some scoring touch in a depth role, which is likely why he was counted on as a sporadic call-up option during his time with the Ducks.
Regenda signed with San Jose this past summer as a Group Six unrestricted free agent, and got a hefty $400K guarantee on his contract. While he’ll now return to making his $350K AHL salary, this recall not only provided Regenda with a brief pay bump, but it also helped him pave the way for more extensive (and lucrative) stays on the NHL roster down the line.
What appears to have cost Regenda his spot on San Jose’s NHL roster is the return of Skinner from IR. Skinner, 33, is playing out a one-year, $3MM deal with the Sharks. He scored 16 goals and 29 points in 72 games with the Edmonton Oilers last season, and currently has seven points in 17 games this season.
Skinner has been out since Nov. 13 with a lower-body injury, an injury that cost him the chance to play in 10 games. When he returns to the lineup, he’ll play on the third line alongside Collin Graf and Ty Dellandrea, and should likely step into Regenda’s vacated power play role as well.
Photos courtesy of David Gonzales-Imagn Images