Following a 5-4 preseason loss to the Anaheim Ducks yesterday, the Arizona Coyotes announced that they sent 10 players to the minors, put 8 on waivers, and one returned to junior hockey.
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With the preseason coming to a close soon, final NHL rosters are beginning to be set and cuts are expected.
Here is the list of players that have been sent down:
- Demoted to the Tuscon Roadrunners: Miloš Kelemen, Nathan Smith, Aku Ratÿ, Ben McCartney, Vladislav Kolyachonok, Josh Doan, Michael Kesselring, Patrik Koch, Montana Onyebuchi, and Curtis Douglas.
- Waived for the purpose of being demoted to Tuscon: Steven Kampfer, Cam Crotty, Jan Jenik, Travis Barron, John Leonard, Ryan McGregor, Matt Villalta, and Justin Kirkland.
- Sent back to juniors: Connor Geekie will return to his junior team, the Wenatchee Wild in the Western Hockey League (WHL).
The Coyotes announced today that the following players have been assigned to the Tucson Roadrunners (AHL):
•Milos Kelemen
•Nathan Smith
•Aku Raty
•Ben McCartney
•Vladislav Kolyachonok
•Josh Doan
•Michael Kesselring
•Patrik Koch
•Montana Onyebuchi
•Curtis Douglas
In…— Arizona Coyotes PR (@AZCoyotesPR) October 2, 2023
The following players have been placed on Waivers with the purposes of being assigned to the Tucson Roadrunners (AHL):
•Steven Kampfer
•Cam Crotty
•Jan Jenik
•Travis Barron
•John Leonard
•Ryan McGregor
•Matt Villalta
•Justin Kirkland— Arizona Coyotes PR (@AZCoyotesPR) October 2, 2023
* Players placed on waivers with the purpose of being assigned to the AHL are signed to an NHL contract and can be picked up by the 31 other teams in the league before being able to be sent down to the minors.
The Coyotes also announced that Conor Geekie has been returned to Wenatchee (WHL).
— Arizona Coyotes PR (@AZCoyotesPR) October 2, 2023
Notable Demotions
Out of the names that have been sent down to the Roadrunners, former Arizona State Sun Devil right-winger Josh Doan was demoted, which came by surprise.
In 3 preseason games, Doan had 3 goals and 2 assists for 5 points, including a hat trick in the 5-1 Arizona victory over the St. Louis Blues on Sept. 23.
After departing from ASU to turn pro in Tucson this past spring, Josh ,the son of Coyote’s legend Shane Doan, had 3 goals and 3 assists for 6 points in his short 14-game stint in the AHL.
Besides Doan, other notable demotions included Kelemen, Kesselring and JenÃk.
Before the past NHL season concluded, Kelemen featured in 14 games for the Coyotes and had 1 goal.
The Slovakian scored 14 goal and had 16 assists for 30 points in 59 AHL games for the Roadrunners in the 2022-23 campaign.
When Coyotes center Nick Bjugstad was traded to the Edmonton Oilers before the 2023 trade deadline on Mar. 2, Kesselring was one of the pieces that came to the valley.
After the trade was made official, Kesselring played 9 games for Arizona and assisted 3 times before being sent down to Tuscon.
For the Roadrunners, the 6’4 defenseman scored twice and recorded 5 assists in 10 games while suiting up for 3 AHL playoff games.
As for JenÃk, he will have to clear waivers before he is can be sent down to Tucson. The forward has been promoted and demoted between the Coyotes and Tucson since 2020.
When he has been on Arizona, JenÃk has netted 4 goals and 1 assist in 17 NHL games. He featured in two games for the Coyotes last season.
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Alec Cipollini is a journalist covering the Arizona Coyotes and Phoenix Rising for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his new X account @AlecCipollini
