Arizona Coyotes recall G Antti Raanta, send Adin Hill to Tucson

After starting the 2019-20 season in AHL Tucson on a conditioning loan, goaltender Antti Raanta has been recalled by the Arizona Coyotes.

In a corresponding move, fellow goaltender Adin Hill — who was called up when Raanta was assigned to Tucson — has been returned to the Roadrunners.

Raanta, 30, missed most of last year with a lower-body injury and played only two periods of preseason hockey this year, being ruled as day-to-day with a lower-body injury. In light of his lack of ice time in the past year, the Coyotes elected to have Raanta start the year on a conditioning loan.

Conditioning loans, as dictated by the league’s Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), allow teams to send players to the minor leagues at their consent for a period lasting no longer than 14 days.

Generally, players who are eligible for waivers (such as Raanta) cannot be placed in the minor leagues without clearing waivers first. But the conditioning loan circumvents that policy and allows teams to get players back into game shape; similar to MLB’s rehab stints with minor league affiliates.

Raanta started for the Roadrunners in their season-opener on Friday night in Texas, making 19 saves in a shutout over the Stars.

He re-joins a Coyotes team that has Darcy Kuemper and Eric Comrie on its goaltending roster, the latter of whom was claimed off of waivers from the Winnipeg Jets just before the start of the season.

When Raanta was sent to Tucson, the Coyotes called up Hill despite having both Kuemper and Comrie on the roster, because Comrie could not get to Anaheim in time for the opener due to visa-related matters.

Raanta is entering his third season with the Coyotes and, over the span of his first two years, has played 59 games with a .925 save percentage.

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