The Night Before Hockey: Roster MAKES, CUTS, & Line Combinations

[2014olympicgold]

NHL.com's article with opening night rosters.
This is pretty helpful because it has all names just on one page. Easy to read them quickly.
https://www.nhl.com/news/nhl-announc...rs/c-282578060

Oddly, there are SEVERAL teams carrying 8D or 3G to start the year.
Heck, the Wings are carrying Edward Pasquale?!?
In past years, 23-man rosters are almost exclusively 14F, 7D, 2G... (i.e. a +2F, +1D)

I wonder if its the "expansion draft" rules that have teams carrying an extra G to start the year.
As for carrying +2D... maybe its easier for practicing - to have 4 pairs of D. That would make sense for drills & scrimmaging.
And it is probably easier to just flex ONE forward into practice lines rather than flex two extra forwards into practice drills.

??? Any thoughts ???

Maybe to keep the games played (on an NHL roster) down for some of those young guys so they don’t get exposed. With the expansion team only needing 3 goalies, you can expose your 3^rd string goalie knowing they won’t pick him.

[Goldendelicious]

What I'm curious to know (never seen the answer), why are injured players always kept on NHL rosters after the "final cuts"? Is there something in the CBA that states you can't cut a player (even junior eligible) if he's injured? For example, see STL has kept Opilka (G) up with the team. By no means is he going to make the Blues so why not just cut him already?

[2014olympicgold]

What I'm curious to know (never seen the answer), why are injured players always kept on NHL rosters after the "final cuts"? Is there something in the CBA that states you can't cut a player (even junior eligible) if he's injured? For example, see STL has kept Opilka (G) up with the team. By no means is he going to make the Blues so why not just cut him already?

Pretty sure you can’t move a player to a different league when injured.

“Injured players cannot be loaned to a minor league team before being cleared to play. However, because the waiver expiration rules are not suspended when a player is injured, if the player was already recalled from that team and waivers haven't expired, he can be returned to the minor league team, but he still receives his NHL salary until cleared to play.

If the player agrees, a team can send him without waivers to the AHL for a conditioning loan for up to fourteen consecutive days.

A player on long-term injured reserve can be sent, if he agrees, to the AHL on a conditioning loan for up to three games or six days, whichever is longer, to determine if he is fit to play.

For the remainder of the regular season following the trade deadline, only four players may be recalled. However, players may be recalled on emergency recall, and players may be recalled when the minor league club has finished its season.

For playoffs, teams may recall an unlimited number of players, but is limited to only three recalled players on the active roster at once. That is, unless it recalled four players following the trade deadline, in which case it can keep all four for the remainder of the playoffs.”
http://www.litterboxcats.com/2013/10...orida-panthers