In order to clear up room for scoring forward Patric Hornqvist, who was activated off of IR today, Nashville decided to send defenseman Ryan Ellis down to Milwaukee.

Ellis, who started the season in Milwaukee, has been with Nashville since the day the NHL lockout ended after collecting nine points in an injury-shortened 20 games.

After a fast start to season with the Predators, Ellis has gone horribly cold. He is without a point since Feb. 14 (a stretch of 17 games), with the low point coming on March 14 when the 22-year-old suffered through a minus-four night as the Vancouver whipped the Predators 7-4. However, Ellis did compete in his first NHL fight in a 4-0 win over Dallas on March 12.

The Freelton, Ontario native has just six points in 31 NHL games this season after picking up 11 in 32 last season (both seasons Ellis started in Milwaukee). Ellis will join Craig Smith as recently demoted Predators on the Milwaukee roster.

So Roundtable . . . Are you as surprised as I am to see Ryan Ellis back in Milwaukee? Did his recent play warrant this demotion? Has Victor Bartley jumped ahead of Ellis and Jon Blum on the Predators’ depth chart (Bartley’s playing around 20 mins a game in his last three contests)? How long do you expect Ellis to be down?

Confirming news that was out on the interweb yesterday, Milwaukee forward Taylor Beck has been officially recalled by the Nashville Predators.

With the Admirals inching closer to playoff inclusion, their roster continues to be thinned by callups from Nashville. This time its NHL first-timer Beck that is on his way up to the Predators, taking away from Milwaukee the team’s leading scorer and leading power play producer.

The 21-year-old will be making his first visit to the Music City, likely replacing forward Paul Gaustad, who was placed on injured reserve. So far Beck has 11 goals and 41 points in 50 AHL games this season.

Beck joins Chris Mueller, Victor Bartley, Gabriel Bourque, Jonathon Blum and Ryan Ellis as Admirals who started the season in Milwaukee, that are now up in Nashville. And if you are counting at home, the count is up to 13 players that have dressed for the Admirals this season are no longer with the club.

So Roundtable . . . What do you think of the Beck recall? Has his play warranted a shot in the show? Can the Admirals replace his offense?

2012-2013 Milwaukee Admirals: 58 G.P., 28-24-3-3–62 pts., 147 goals scored, 170 goals allowed, 11th place in the Western Conference (3rd Midwest Division). Leading scorer: Taylor Beck (11 goals, 28 assists, 39 points). Best Recent Win: March 8-9, 4-3 over Chicago; 3-2 at Chicago. Worst Recent Loss: March 3, Grand Rapids 5 at Milwaukee 1.

The physical nature of the game of hockey has left a laundry list of players of have been forced to retire early. Some great players like Cam Neely and Bobby Orr, just to name two, and of late Marc Savard and Chris Pronger, saw their careers shortened by injuries. But a much sadder outcome is players like Brett Lindros or now potentially Blake Geoffrion, whose careers were cut down before they ever truly got started.

Geoffrion got to suit up for exactly 55 games of NHL hockey and lasted professionally for parts of four professional seasons, numbers that many like myself would be envious of, but there was a whole lot of years of hockey left in the 25-year-old, who made the right call to think about calling it quits today.

Blake has no bigger fan than myself, even if he’s never quite met lofty expectations. But what people don’t realize is that Geoffrion was still developing, and was certainly a late bloomer. The Brentwood, Tennessee native scored just six points his first year at Wisconsin before capturing the Hobey Baker as college hockey’s best player his senior season. The number of college players that have grown that much in four years you can count on one hand.

In 2010-2011 Geoffrion showed signs of emerging as a real NHL prospect. After a slow start he became a dominant force at the AHL level with the Admirals, scoring 37 points in 45 games before being called up to Nashville. With the Predators he would score six goals in 20 games (including a hat-trick) and then dress for 12 playoff games.

Who knows what kind of player Geoffrion would have become without his injury history? Likely, not the force that Nashville was expecting with their second-round pick in 2006, but still a solid professional player. We all miss you Blake!

So Roundtable . . . Do you have any favorite Geoffrion moments?

Continuing the flurry of recent activity from Nashville, the Predators recalled defenseman Victor Bartley from Milwaukee today. Bartley, one of the top two-way blue liners in the AHL, receives the nod after compiling 26 points in 54 games this season (ranking in the top 20 for league defenders).

With towering defenseman Hal Gill recently placed on IR, Bartley becomes  Nashville’s seventh point man, and will likely be in place to shake up the roster slightly. The Predators have a pair of back-to-back games in the coming weeks, and a four-game in seven nights stretch starting on St. Patrick’s Day.

Unlike the Predators’ two recent waiver wire additions of Bobby Butler and Zach Boychuk, Bartley has yet to play in the NHL. But the Ottawa, Ontario native did attend the shortened Nashville training camp after the lockout in January.

Perhaps knowing this move was upcoming, the Admirals have recently added defensemen Scott Ford and Joe Piskula. In separate move Milwaukee returned forward Jack MacLellan to the ECHL’s Cincinnati Cyclones.

So Roundtable . . . What do you think of the Bartley recall? Does this signal that Predators might be looking more to Milwaukee for help? Will Bartley play during his stay in Nashville? How long are you expecting him to be up?

Looking to shake up their recent offensive rut, on Monday the Nashville Predators have put in a waiver claim for talented forward Bobby Butler, from the New Jersey Devils. The 25-year-old had just two points in 14 games with New Jersey this season, but contributed 27 in 37 AHL games with Albany.

Butler is likely headed directly to Nashville, where the forward might be able to help a Predators offense that’s scored just seven goals in its past five games, including four losses (and two of the shutout variety).

Butler is playing on a two-way contract that pays him $525,000 at the NHL level and $105,000 at the AHL level. So far Butler has 108 NHL games to his playing resume.

Prior to turning professional, Butler was a star with University of New Hampshire, totaling 121 points in a solid four-year career.

Tuesday the Predators announced that they claimed Zach Boychuk from the Pittsburgh Penguins. The 23-year-old has skated in 80 NHL games, mostly with Carolina, collecting seven goals and 18 points. Prior to joining Nashville, Boychuk dressed for seven games with the Penguins, who picked him up off of waivers from Carolina.

Much like Butler, Boychuk’s been a solid AHL player scoring more than 20 goals in two seasons, and 16 in just 37 games this fall with the Charlotte Checkers. The former 14th overall pick of the 2008 entry draft is on a two-way deal that pays him $625,000 at the NHL level and $105,000 at the AHL level.

2012-2013 Milwaukee Admirals: 53 G.P., 25-22-3-3–56 pts., 135 goals scored, 153 goals allowed, 11th place in the Western Conference (3rd Midwest Division). Leading scorer: Taylor Beck (11 goals, 27 assists, 38 points). Best Recent Win: Feb. 23, 3-1 at Toronto. Worst Recent Loss: Feb. 21, Lake Erie 7 at Milwaukee 1.

Admirals goaltender Magnus Hellberg has been named AHL Goaltender of the Month for February. Hardly shocking news considering his personal 6-1-0 record, 1.36 G.A.A. and .950 save percentage during the span, but I think what’s more shocking is that Hellberg, not Jeremy Smith is the Admirals’ defacto No. 1 netminder right now. Smith’s February has been nightmarish, considering he’s received four starts, lost all four and posted a 6.57 G.A.A. and an .810 save percentage.

In the race to be in between Milwaukee’s pipes, Hellberg is the clear frontrunner. Plus he fits the recent Nashville mold as a big Scandinavian keeper (he, Pekka Rinne and Anders Lindback are all 6’5″ or taller). It doesn’t hurt that “Hells Bells” is almost exactly two years younger than Smith either.

But before you start forgetting about Smith, remember how good he’s been at times with Milwaukee. Smith is not a “classic” goaltender, but rather a battler without the most “pure” style. Goalies of this mold (like a Tim Thomas or Dominic Hasek) tend to be streaky. If Smith can turn it around, he will still be a huge asset for Milwaukee going forward with four more 3-in-3s left on the schedule starting tonight.

Once last thing I want to rant about before putting away my keyboard: AHL standings. Does anyone other than me get frustrated when they pull up an AHL or NHL standings and the first choice (or default choice) is ranking by division? Sure its great to see when your team is in first place in the division, but that means practically nothing in the greater picture. Playoff berths are determined by conference standing, and therefore THAT should be always be the default. Being second place in your division doesn’t mean anything unless it earns you a playoff berth.

Speaking of divisions, the AHL just recently switched to a six division system to mirror the NHL. Now the NHL is again on the verge of reverting to a four division format, similar to the AHL prior to the 2011-12 season. If the NHL does realign it will be interesting to see how the AHL decides to move forward.

So Roundtable . . . Do you think Jeremy Smith can refind his game? Has Hellberg won you over? Do you think the AHL should realign once again?

Some curious news out of Nashville/Milwaukee today.

The Calgary Flames have sent defenseman Joe Piskula to the Nashville Predators in exchange for forward Brian McGrattan. What makes this decision “curious” is the fact that McGrattan was available via the waiver wire earlier in the week, therefore on the surface its easy to wonder why the Flames didn’t just put a claim in for McGrattan, who was assigned to Milwaukee on Wednesday.

On factor could be the Reserve List, which I will let Dirk Hoag of On the Forecheck explain.

No matter what the reason, McGrattan failed to make much of an impact with either Milwaukee or Nashville this season. The physical forward registered no points and four PIMs in his six games with the Admirals (his last being Sunday against Hamilton).

In Piskula the Admirals receive an immediate upgrade to their blueline, picking up a defenseman with two goals, 10 points and a plus-five rating, combined with 51 PIMs in 46 games this year.

Though the 28-year-old’s best shot to play in the NHL might be behind him (the Antigo, Wisconsin native has earned 10 games in the show to date, registering no points and eight PIMs with a minus-eight rating), Piskula remains a top defenseman in the AHL. In his five AHL seasons with Manchester and Abbotsford, Piskula has always played as a plus defenseman, averaging a rating of +7.4 at that level, while collecting eight goals and 62 points.

Admirals fans might remember him as the player who was a plus-three with Abbotsford against Milwaukee in a three-game playoff sweep last spring. I will always remember Piskula as a top blueliner on the Wisconsin Badgers’ most recent NCAA championship team (which claimed the title at the Bradley Center). Piskula then bolted to the Los Angeles Kings after his junior season.

As Ryan mentioned below, to replace McGrattan’s vacated spot on the Admirals roster, Milwaukee recalled talented forward Josh Shalla from Cincinnati. Shalla owns 21 goals in 37 games with the Cyclones, but has just three assists in 11 games with the Admirals so far this season.

So Roundtable . . . How would you like to welcome Joe Piskula? Can he be an impact defender with the Admirals, or even Nashville? Were Milwaukee’s recent changes to their blueline necessary considering the unfortunate rash of blowout losses over the last few weeks?