The Abbotsford Heat got star goalie Leland Irving back on Tuesday evening, as he was reassigned to the AHL club by the Calgary Flames.
Irving had been with the Flames since Dec. 4, when he was summoned to fill in for backup keeper Henrik Karlsson, who had suffered a knee injury. During his first career NHL stint, Irving was solid, posting a 1-1-2 record to go with a .908 save percentage and a 3.67 goals-against average. He picked up his first NHL win on Dec. 23, making 29 saves in a 3-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks.
At the time of his recall, Irving was the runaway leader in wins among AHL goalies with 15. Despite being gone for nearly two months, he's only three victories in arrears of the league lead of 18, held jointly by Yann Danis of the Oklahoma City Barons, Jeremy Smith of the Milwaukee Admirals, Ben Bishop of the Peoria Rivermen, and Dustin Tokarski of the Norfolk Admirals.
Irving and Danny Taylor now comprise the goaltending tandem for the Heat, who open a three-game road trip on Thursday against the Rochester Americans.