Brian Lee sent down, Erik Karlsson recalled

Mere minutes after posting that Silver Nuggets that questioned who will be sent down to make room for Anton Volchenkov, the Senators answered the question by sending Brian Lee back to Binghamton. More surprising, though, is that Erik Karlsson was called up. (link)

From the sounds of it, Volchenkov will not be ready for gametime tomorrow against the Bruins, which is why the team still needs another defenseman. But why is Erik Karlsson getting the call-up when it means the team will be burning off a year of his entry-level contract if he plays? I realize that Bryan Murray said that he didn't care about the ten game marker for ELCs, but I just assumed he was lying. Didn't everyone?

This becomes more confusing because, if you ask me, Brian Lee has actually been playing good hockey as of late. He's been tougher on the puck, had some nice passes, and strong rushes. Sending him back to the AHL while promoting Karlsson is only going to infuriate Lee, who is probably sick of constantly changing his address.

Karlsson has 11 points in 12 games with the Binghamton Senators, all assists, including three assists in a game last night.