With the NHL now off for the next three days, there have been a handful of roster moves around the league today. The new rule saying that players must play in at least one AHL game if they’re sent down has limited the number of moves but San Jose was among those to make one. Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News relays (Twitter link) that the Sharks have assigned winger Ethan Cardwell to AHL San Jose.
The 23-year-old was recalled a little more than a week ago following injuries to forwards Will Smith and Philipp Kurashev. Since the promotion was so recent, Cardwell remained eligible to be sent down even with the roster freeze in effect.
Cardwell got into three games with the Sharks on this stint, bringing his season total to seven. However, the most recent one – last night against Vegas – was particularly tough as he was on the ice for four goals against despite playing a season-low 9:48. He didn’t pick up any points over those three outings, keeping his total for the campaign at one, a goal scored back in early November.
Cardwell has spent the bulk of the season with the Barracuda but injuries have limited him to just 14 games. He has been productive in those outings, however, with three goals and six assists.
With the move, San Jose now has one open roster spot. They can either choose to fill it by calling someone else up as early as Saturday or, if Kurashev is able to return, he can be activated into that vacancy.