Senators recall Mike Hoffman
Meanwhile, Borowiecki and Grant are Bingo bound
The Senators have announced (et en français) the recall of Mike Hoffman this morning, and the reassignment of Mark Borowiecki and Derek Grant back to Binghamton.
Hoffman, recently named the B-Sens captain, lead the team in points with 11 goals and 15 assists. His 26 points were also good enough for 2nd overall in the AHL. Out of 4 players who've been above a point per game in Bingo, he's the only who hasn't had time with the big club this year (JGP, SDC and Z-bad are the other 3).
Our own prospect guru bobbykelly had some rather nice things to say about Hoffman during the summer's Top 25 under 25. He ranked 11th this time around, up from 15th and 19th in the previous two installments.
Hoffman is a smooth skating forward who shoots the puck as well as he passes it. His quickness and release made him into a veritable weapon on Binghamton, where he notched a twenty-goal season during their low-flying 2011-2012 campaign. He spent a fair amount of time manning the point on the powerplay under Kurt Kleinendorst and was a valued player this past year for Luke Richardson, as well.
It's difficult to say where he'll end up in the lineup. He's listed officially as a centre by the league, but has been playing the left wing in Bingo and it's the wing we're likely to see him on. My guess is that he will debut in the place of Grant, but Michalek should probably be looking over his shoulder. So much for my guess! Today's noon skate puts him with Ryan and Turris. The full lines are MacArthur-Spezza-Zibanejad, Hoffman-Turris-Ryan, Michalek-Smith-Neil, Conacher-Greening-Condra.
Also of note is that Hoffman is not waiver exempt. This won't be a short-term call up - he's going to either sink or swim in what might be his last chance to make the big club in a Senators uniform.
