Richardson Reassigned...Again

On a lazy Sunday afternoon, the Avalanche announced that Brad Richardson has been sent back down to Lake Erie.

And unfortunately it's not for a conditioning assignment or it would have been mentioned in the news release. So I guess he was sent down for underperforming.

It makes perfect sense too. The team is currently short on forwards so they send down a center and call up a defenseman.

I suppose since Arnason is about to come back it makes a forward expendable but what about T.J. Hensick? Or am I the only one unimpressed with Hensick's time with the big boys?

Hensick Up, Richardson Down

The Colorado Avalanche have recalled T.J. Hensick from Lake Erie. The Lake Erie Monsters are having a horrendous season - as can be expected from a new franchise - but Hensick has led them in scoring with 13 points in 18 games.

"But who's roster spot will he take up?", you might ask. To that I answer "Didn't you read the headline?" Yes, Brad Richardson is headed down to Lake Erie in a move that makes me go "Huh?"

I mean, I know last game Richardson was toiling down on the 4th line due to lack of space in the other 3 lines, but just a game before that he was skating with Sakic on line numero uno. And he's been prevalent and proficient on the penalty kill as well.

In related news, Sakic left yesterday's game with a minor groin pull. Oh, now I'm putting it together.

Sakic's "minor" groin pull may be a bit more "major" than "minor" so they called up another center. And of course with Lappy nearing a return from a tweaked knee, somebody had to go back down for him.

But why Richardson and not McCormick? In fact, why send anybody down at all? There are two healthy forward scratches per game typically comprimised of Scott Parker and the latest loser of the "toss the dart at the fourth-liner" game.

Avalanche Reassign Weiman

The Avalanche announced that they have reassigned Tyler Weiman to Lake Erie where he will take over as the starting goaltender.

Weiman saw only 10 minutes during his time with the big club where he stopped 10 shots in relief of Peter Budaj and looked solid.

His time will come but for now he'll head up the Lake Erie Monsters roster as they quest forth in their inaugural season.

Jose Theodore to Start for Lake Erie Monsters

Jose Theodore is set to complete his rehabilitation stint by starting for the Lake Erie Monsters in their inaugural game this Saturday. After undergoing a knee scope, Theodore has yet to see game action in the preseason or regular season.

He only began practicing in full equipment last Thursday and seeing game action is the best way to get a goaltender going. Even if it's in the AHL.

GM Francois Gigure stated: "Jose is in the final stages of his rehabilitation work and both our hockey staff and he agreed that actual game action would be the way to complete this process."

The game can be tracked via the AHL's scoreboard page. They also have pay-per-view webcasts and it will be on FSN Ohio starting at 7:30 EST.

Chris Stewart Assigned to Lake Erie

Chris Stewart has been sent down to the Lake Erie Monsters after a terrific rookie camp. It was unexpected as Stewart had been racking up points since rookie camp began. However the coaching staff felt he was too inconsistent and sent him down quicker than some, and likely Stewart himself, would have suspected.

Matt Hussey and Ken Roche were also assigned to Lake Erie as the Avalanche pared their roster down to 35 in advance of their upcoming preseason game against the Kings.

It was also announced that Curtis Leschyshyn, who has the hardest last name to spell in the history of last names, has declined to take up the color commentary/analyst spot on the radio with Norm Jones. If you listened to the radio calls of the games, you would realize he doesn't seem cut out for that position. He will likely end up somewhere else within the organization in the future.

Chris Stewart Assigned to Lake Erie

Chris Stewart has been sent down to the Lake Erie Monsters after a terrific rookie camp. It was unexpected as Stewart had been racking up points since rookie camp began. However the coaching staff felt he was too inconsistent and sent him down quicker than some, and likely Stewart himself, would have suspected.

Matt Hussey and Ken Roche were also assigned to Lake Erie as the Avalanche pared their roster down to 35 in advance of their upcoming preseason game against the Kings.

It was also announced that Curtis Leschyshyn, who has the hardest last name to spell in the history of last names, has declined to take up the color commentary/analyst spot on the radio with Norm Jones. If you listened to the radio calls of the games, you would realize he doesn't seem cut out for that position. He will likely end up somewhere else within the organization in the future.

Avalanche Sign O'Neil and Smith

No, it's not Jeff O'Neil and Jason Smith. It's Wes O'Neil and Wyatt Smith. The signing was announced today although all weekend long the Wyatt Smith signing was talked about on message boards. Yes, the state of the hockey world right now is so slow that the signing of a reserve forward was the talk of the weekend.

O'Neil, a former Islanders pick, has just finished up with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and was second among team defenceman with 21 points. He's a big guy at 6'4" and 200lbs but he's rated at 6.5 D on HockeyFutures.com. So currently he's expected to be a 5th or 6th D-man who may not even live up to those high expectations. But he'll likely do well on the Lake Erie Monsters roster.

Wyatt Smith is a career reserve forward who spent 61 games with the Minnesota Wild last season which was a career high. Another player likely to be on the Monsters roster for most of the year.

Thankfully the Canada-Russia Super Series will be a nice distraction from all this intense off-season action. At least until rookie camp starts on September 8th. I'll be watching the Canada-Russia game in Saskatoon on September 5th and I'm looking forward to seeing John Tavares in action. TSN and Rogers will be broadcasting the games on TV and across the ol' InterWeb.