Evening Notes: Kuemper, Granlund, Avalanche
Heading into the offseason, the Los Angeles Kings will have just over $18MM in cap space. Los Angeles will use some of that to retain defenseman Brandt Clarke, and could burn through much of the rest if they wish to retain Andrei Kuzmenko, Scott Laughton, and Mathieu Joseph.
In a new article on Mayor’s Manor, Scott Coffman opined that the Kings could look to move netminder Darcy Kuemper to open up additional breathing room and pursue a top-six center. Kuemper, 36, managed a 19-14-15 record in 50 games this past season with a .891 SV%. Additionally, he’s one year removed from being a Vezina Trophy finalist and one year remaining on his contract.
Despite Anton Forsberg‘s strong performance last season, Los Angeles lacks a reliable starting goaltender if they trade Kuemper. However, they could form a competent goaltending committee. Erik Portillo is signed through next season, and the Kings brought in another prospect, Hampton Slukynsky, after his collegiate season ended. It would be putting a lot of faith in a pair of unproven talents at the NHL level, but it might be a risk the Kings have to take.
Additional evening notes:
- Now that the Anaheim Ducks’ season has ended, it was expected that a few players could make their way to Switzerland for the IIHF World Championships. One of them has done just that, as it was announced that Mikael Granlund will be joining Team Finland for the remainder of the tournament. Although he didn’t play for his home country last spring, Granlund represented Finland well at the Olympic Games in February, scoring one goal and three points in six games.
- Earlier today, Jesse Montano of Guerilla Sports reported that Cale Makar, Josh Manson, Brent Burns, and Artturi Lehkonen are all nursing day-to-day injuries for the Colorado Avalanche. Despite Game 1 of the Western Conference Final being four days away, each of the injured members of the Avalanche is expected to play.
Central Notes: Kealty, Malinski, McCarron
According to a new article from Alex Daugherty of The Tennessean, the Nashville Predators have interviewed Assistant General Manager Jeff Kealty for their General Manager vacancy. Still, even if he doesn’t land the job, Kealty articulated that he’d like to remain with the Predators moving forward.
Now that David Poile and Barry Trotz have moved on, Kealty likely has the lengthiest tenure in Nashville of anyone in the organization. He began with the club ahead of the 2001-02 season as an amateur scout.
Kealty remained as a scout until being promoted to the Predators’ Director of Scouting in 2007. He held that position for a decade before being appointed the team’s Assistant General Manager, where he continues to serve today. Still, given the lengthy hiring process, it’s becoming increasingly likely that Nashville will hire from outside the organization to lead the team’s front office. Kealty would be more of the same, having served only under Poile and Trotz throughout his off-ice career.
Additional notes from the Central Division:
- Evan Rawal of The Denver Gazette reported that Colorado Avalanche defenseman Sam Malinski is practicing with the team in a non-contact jersey. Malinski missed Colorado’s final two games of Round Two due to an upper-body injury. Given that the team has sustained only one loss through the postseason so far, it’s hard to imagine the Avalanche not reaching the Stanley Cup Final if they’re able to ice a healthy roster in the Western Conference Final.
- Heading into the offseason, the Minnesota Wild have six forwards on the roster that are set to hit unrestricted free agency in a few weeks. According to Michael Russo and Joe Smith of The Athletic, trade deadline acquisition Michael McCarron would like to say, but for the right price. McCarron was humbled that the Wild pursued them as aggressively as they did at the deadline, but also noted that he’s at a point in his career where he’d like some security. Given his playstyle, he may pursue a contract similar to William Carrier of the Carolina Hurricanes, who favored term over AAV a few years ago.
The Predators Need To Pick A Direction
The Nashville Predators have never truly done a tear-it-down-to-the-studs rebuild in their short history, yet it’s been rare for them to miss the playoffs. This recent two year absence from the postseason has been difficult for the Predators, especially after their free-agent haul in the summer of 2024. At that time, it looked like they were on their way to a solid retool, only to be a massive disappointment on the ice during the 2024-25 season. One of the players they signed to a massive contract was forward Steven Stamkos, who is now entering the third year of a four-year, $32MM contract. He was terrific for the team last year, putting them in a position to trade him (if he agrees to a move) or keep him and try to retool this summer to compete for a playoff spot next year. This crossroads isn’t unique to Stamkos; the Predators have a number of veterans in similar spots, along with some young players hoping to make a name for themselves sooner rather than later.
It’s hard to gauge whether Stamkos would welcome a trade, as he wasn’t interested in one prior to the trade deadline. But if he were put on the market, there would be suitors, particularly after he had 42 goals and 24 assists in 82 games last year. Stamkos doesn’t sound like a player who expects to be moved, and he also doesn’t sound like he expects Nashville to rebuild, which would mean another summer of aggressively trying to improve the NHL roster. The reality is that Stamkos doesn’t know 100% what the direction will be, as Nashville doesn’t have a general manager at the moment, and there won’t be any earth-shattering moves until that is in place.
A couple of interesting tidbits about Stamkos and his contract situation. The 36-year-old holds a full no-move clause, which means he controls his fate and could remain in Nashville if he prefers. The other note is that Stamkos is owed a $2MM signing bonus next year (reportedly in July), meaning that after that payment is made, he is owed just $11.75MM in actual cash for the final two seasons of the deal while carrying an $8MM cap hit. That information won’t sway any of the teams in the upper echelon of league revenue, but for a team like the Carolina Hurricanes, which watches the dollars in and out carefully, it will be quite intriguing to owe fewer actual cash to a potential top-six player.
Moving on from Stamkos, Ryan O’Reilly is another veteran center who could be traded, as he has just one year left on his deal at a bargain rate of $4.5MM. At 35 years of age, O’Reilly just finished one of the finest offensive seasons of his career, tallying 25 goals and 49 assists in 81 games while continuing his usual responsible defensive play. Like Stamkos, O’Reilly was a name thrown around before the NHL Trade Deadline, but he ultimately remained with the Predators through the end of the season. If Nashville were to make O’Reilly available, the asking price would be very high, as he remains a top-six center, and his cap hit is extraordinarily low for a player of his calibre. O’Reilly doesn’t technically have a no-movement clause but given the respect the Predators have for the veteran, one would have to believe they would involve him in the process.
If the Predators elect to move Stamkos and O’Reilly, it would be clear they’re embarking on a rebuild, and it would make sense to explore moves involving forwards Filip Forsberg and Jonathan Marchessault, defenders Brady Skjei and Roman Josi, and goaltender Juuse Saros. All of those veterans are on pricey contracts with multiple years left on their deals and are on the wrong side of 30. They effectively represent Nashville’s current core, and without Stamkos and O’Reilly, they are simply not good enough to even make the playoffs, let alone win a round or two. Moving Stamkos and/or O’Reilly would be the first step to signal a rebuild in Nashville.
But while moving one or two players, such as Stamkos and O’Reilly, makes sense in a vacuum (for the right price), it doesn’t make sense to move them and call it a summer. Nashville has to decide which direction to go. Is it a good opportunity to add veteran talent this summer, or is it time to tear things down and rebuild?
The decision will rest with the new general manager, but there are a few significant factors beyond the current roster. For one, Nashville currently has one of the five best farm systems in the entire NHL (according to Scott Wheeler of The Athletic), and if they choose to add to their lineup, they will lose some of those pieces. However, if they move out some veterans, it will only add to their growing cupboard of future talent.
Another factor is the division the Predators play in. You can make a strong case that the Central Division was the toughest in hockey this year, and it doesn’t look like it’s getting any easier anytime soon. If the Predators want to make a run at the playoffs next year, they will have to compete with Dallas, Colorado, Minnesota, Winnipeg, Utah, and a Chicago team that will be aggressive this summer. No easy task, but it does make one wonder whether the time to aggressively add to the roster is now or later.
Finally, we have the situation around the NHL: teams have an overwhelming amount of cap space to throw around this summer, but very little talent to spend it on. The free agent pool is about as thin as it’s ever been, and teams are going to be forced to make trades to get better. Enter Nashville, which could essentially name its price on some of its players, inflating the potential trade returns. It’s a good time to be a seller, and Nashville would be one of the few true sellers if it elects to go down that road.
No Progress In Extension Talks Between Anaheim Ducks, Jacob Trouba
A little over a year ago, the Anaheim Ducks acquired defenseman Jacob Trouba from the New York Rangers in what appeared at the time as a salary dump for the latter. He was embroiled in the worst season of his NHL career, and looked more like a placeholder for the Ducks as their prospects made their way to the NHL ranks.
However, a year later, Trouba has become a fixture on Anaheim’s blue line, helping the Ducks to their first postseason appearance since the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs. Unfortunately, as much as they would like to keep Trouba, the two sides haven’t gotten close to finalizing a contract extension.
Speaking on The Fan Hockey Show, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said, “They’ve been negotiating with [Jacob] Trouba on and off, and to this point they haven’t been able to close it.” The 13-year veteran will see his seven-year, $56MM contract expire on July 1st in a few weeks.
Much of that likely has to do with the price point. Trouba and his camp are likely trying to capitalize on a resurgent 2025-26 campaign, and the Ducks may view it as a flash in the pan, though they would still like to retain him at a digestible rate. Essentially, since the 2021-22 campaign, Trouba’s performance had been declining across the board.
This season, however, he made a big comeback. Throughout the 2025-26 season, Trouba scored 10 goals and 35 points in 81 games with a -1 rating, averaging nearly 23 minutes of ice time per game. Additionally, he led the team in blocked shots, finished third in hits, and had the sixth-most takeaways on the team.
Diving deeper, his 51.8% CorsiFor at even strength is the second-highest mark of his career, and better than any season he had with the Rangers. Still, heading into his age-32 season, especially with how he plays the game, it’s a fair question from the Ducks if he can keep this up for several more years.
In all seriousness, Anaheim is likely in the driver’s seat in the negotiations, despite Trouba’s impressive season. The team has a solid opportunity this summer to re-work its defensive core for the future, without having a stark drop-off in talent. Trouba is joined by captain Radko Gudas and trade deadline acquisition John Carlson as projected unrestricted free agents this summer. If the Ducks keep only one of the trio, they’ll have a balanced right side of the blue line with Drew Helleson and Tristan Luneau in tow.
According to AFP Analytics, Trouba is projected to land a three-year, $9.25MM contract should he hit the open market this summer. Although he will assuredly earn less than his current $8MM salary, an approximately $3.1MM salary feels remarkably low for the season he just had. If Trouba does make it to the open market, he’ll likely land a deal similar to the extension Adam Larsson signed with the Seattle Kraken last year, a four-year, $21MM ($5.25MM AAV) pact, if not a little bit more.
Danila Klimovich Expected To Sign In KHL
Canucks prospect winger Danila Klimovich is set to have his entry-level contract end next month. However, instead of re-signing with Vancouver, it appears he has other plans. Sport-Express’ Mikhail Zislis reports that Klimovich is set to sign a two-year contract with CSKA Moscow of the KHL.
The 23-year-old was a second-round pick by Vancouver back in 2021, going 41st overall. He was selected out of the Belarusian Vysshaya (their second-tier league) but somewhat surprisingly made the jump to North America right away, signing his entry-level deal a month after being selected.
While that allowed the Canucks to get immediate control of Klimovich’s development, it was a case of exposing him to quite a jump in difficulty right away. He responded relatively well as an 18-year-old with AHL Abbotsford in 2021-22, picking up 18 points in 62 games. He followed that up with a 27-point effort the following year before injuries derailed his 2023-24 campaign, limiting him to just 24 games.
Klimovich found a way to be a bit more productive over the last two years, however. In 2024-25, he notched 25 goals and 13 assists in 65 games but wasn’t able to secure a recall to the big club. This season, he had 18 goals and 16 helpers in 67 outings but again, a promotion to Vancouver never came, despite their struggles down the stretch.
While the Canucks probably would prefer Klimovich to remain in North America and keep working on his game in Abbotsford, it’s certainly understandable that the forward would prefer a different opportunity after five seasons at the AHL level. Assuming a deal is ultimately finalized, Vancouver will be able to retain Klimovich’s NHL rights by tendering him a qualifying offer next month, one that will ultimately be declined.
East Notes: Bruins, Korpisalo, Power, Charron
Jonathan Aspirot was certainly a feel-good story for the Bruins this season, going from a journeyman minor leaguer to a fixture on the top defense pairing alongside Charlie McAvoy. However, Kevin Paul Dupont of The Boston Globe argues that Boston’s top priority this summer should be upgrading McAvoy’s partner on the left side. Hampus Lindholm, Nikita Zadorov, and Mason Lohrei have all been attempted with varying degrees of success to the point where Aspirot was given a chance and made the most of it. But with the Bruins looking to build on their return to the playoffs, adding a player who could help McAvoy find another gear would certainly help their fortunes considerably.
Elsewhere in the East:
- Still with the Bruins, com’s Conor Ryan examined some potential cap casualties should the team decide to make some bigger swings that they can’t fit into their roughly $16MM of cap room this summer. Chief among those is goaltender Joonas Korpisalo, who has two years left on his deal with Boston responsible for $3MM of his cap hit. With Michael DiPietro winning AHL MVP this season, he could plausibly become Jeremy Swayman’s backup next season, allowing them to move Korpisalo to open up a bit of cap space. With several teams likely looking to shake things up between the pipes, there could be a market for his services.
- Facing elimination tonight, the Sabres should have one of their top blueliners available. Owen Power was banged up late on Thursday but head coach Lindy Ruff told reporters today including Matthew Fairburn of The Athletic (Twitter link) that the defenseman should be good to go. In his first taste of playoff action at the NHL level, the 23-year-old has five assists through 11 games and is averaging 20:44 per game of ice time, down just a tad from his season ATOI of 21:39. Ruff wouldn’t comment on any potential lineup changes for Buffalo for tonight’s game.
- Earlier this week, Penguins prospect Jordan Charron announced that he was committing to UMass-Amherst. However, it appears he won’t be making the jump to the college ranks right away. His former GOJHL team, the Ayr Centennials, noted (Twitter link) that the commitment is for 2027-28, meaning that he’ll stay with OHL Soo for one more year. The winger was a fifth-round pick last year and moved to the OHL level this season. He had a solid first year with the Greyhounds, notching 25 goals and 22 assists in 66 games and finished up on a tryout in the minors with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. However, since he didn’t play a game on that agreement, he retains his NCAA eligibility.
Offseason Checklist: Florida Panthers
The offseason has arrived for half of the league’s teams that aren’t taking part in the playoffs plus those who have already been eliminated. Accordingly, it’s now time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at Florida.
Coming off back-to-back Stanley Cup victories (and three straight Final appearances), expectations were high for the Panthers this season. Instead, an older roster with a lot of extra games over the past three years caught up with them and they wound up with an injury-riddled year where next to nothing went right. That resulted in them missing the playoffs for the first time since 2019. GM Bill Zito will have some work to do this summer to get his team back into the thick of things.
Another Bridge For Samoskevich
Last offseason, the top item on this list for Florida was a bridge deal for Mackie Samoskevich. With the winger not eligible for an offer sheet and the Panthers needing cap flexibility, it was a certainty that Samoskevich would be receiving a low-cost, short-term contract. Still, one year at the league minimum salary of $775K came as somewhat of a surprise.
Samoskevich opting to do so gave Florida extra cap room and in return, he gets to be in a much more favorable situation this summer. On top of taking one for the team on the contract front, Samoskevich is now eligible for both an offer sheet and salary arbitration. While the former seems rather unlikely to happen, the latter is particularly notable as it will set him up for a nice raise moving forward.
After putting up 31 points in 72 regular season games last season, the 23-year-old produced at a similar clip this year, recording 32 in 77 contests. That’s still not a particularly long track record but it’s enough for AFP Analytics to project a two-year contract worth over $3.1MM per season, effectively quadrupling his current agreement. He still has four seasons of team control remaining, so another bridge deal isn’t as risky.
Florida’s cap situation is better off this summer than the year before, which we’ll look at a bit closer shortly. That affords them the flexibility to work out a long-term contract but given that he hasn’t established himself as a full-time top-six player yet, doing so probably isn’t justifiable for either side. Accordingly, this year’s checklist starts the same as last year’s with the youngster needing a bridge deal.
Sign A Goalie Tandem
When the Panthers decided to move Spencer Knight as part of the Seth Jones trade last season, they moved out their future between the pipes as part of the process. With Jones playing an important role in their 2025 Cup title, they’re probably not too upset about it. But now, that decision is really going to be felt.
Sergei Bobrovsky has been entrenched between the pipes for Florida for the past seven years after signing the richest deal given to an unrestricted free agent goalie in NHL history. (Pricier deals were given as contract extensions, not open-market agreements.) But now, Bobrovsky is set to return to the open market while heading into his age-38 season in 2026-27 on the heels of his worst season of the seven.
Given his age, it would seem at first glance that a short-term deal would make sense. However, with Brad Marchand landing a six-year contract in the same situation last summer, there have been suggestions that Bobrovsky could be looking for something like that or close. On a short-term agreement, a price tag closer to half of his most recent cap hit makes sense and might even be high given the year he just had. But a four or five-year pact would almost certainly lower the AAV as it would be expected that he’d be transitioning to a backup or platoon role in the later seasons. That could push the price tag to a number starting with a four. That would give them some extra flexibility this summer but even a medium-term agreement for Bobrovsky wouldn’t be without its risks.
Meanwhile, it’s not as if Florida is in a position where their backup is ready to take on the starting workload. Daniil Tarasov didn’t have a great year himself and is only a year removed from being demoted to third-string status in Columbus. On top of that, he’s also a pending unrestricted free agent so there’s no guarantee he’ll be back either.
The UFA market is not particularly deep for teams looking for a starter. There aren’t likely to be too many starters available on the trade market, either, with question marks surrounding those who may be in play. Zito is going to have to find a way to navigate that to find a starter for next season, be it Bobrovsky or someone else, while adding a backup to the mix as well. They have around $15MM in cap room next season per PuckPedia and may need half of that or more to fill out their tandem.
Upgrade Defensive Depth
It’s reasonable to think that Florida’s offense, one that was near the middle of the pack this season, will bounce next year with a much healthier group. So while there might be a temptation to try to pursue an upgrade up front and really deepen the lineup, there’s a more compelling case to try to shore up their defensive depth.
By the time they sign two goalies and re-sign Samoskevich, they’re probably going to have around $5MM or so to play with. That’s not enough to sign a top-four defender but that’s okay as Florida’s top four is set. It’s the bottom end that could be upgraded on and fortunately for the Panthers, the UFA market has decent depth among depth defenders.
As things stand, Florida’s fifth through seventh options are Dmitry Kulikov, Uvis Balinskis, and Donovan Sebrango. Kulikov had an injury-riddled year that saw him miss 63 games due to injuries and he’ll turn 36 in late October. It’s likely they’ll want to manage his minutes on the last two years of his deal. Balinskis is a capable sixth option but could certainly be upgraded on, while Sebrango, a pending RFA, is a non-tender candidate thanks to his arbitration eligibility. He’s a capable depth piece but not someone who can’t be replaced.
Plausibly, one or even two additions would be beneficial. They could take a swing on a bonus-laden deal for Brent Burns, similar to the deal he’s currently on with Colorado if they want a possible top-four fit. Ian Cole, Connor Murphy, and Jamie Oleksiak are the gritty stay-at-home players to anchor a third pairing and penalty kill. If they want to add another right-shot player to the mix, a reunion with Radko Gudas could make sense while Timothy Liljegren or Andrew Peeke would be younger options compared to the others on this list who could still upgrade the third pairing. There are quite a few available this summer.
This would be a prudent, though quiet, way to improve this summer. It wouldn’t be surprising to see this be the route that Zito takes, unless he has something more drastic in mind, something like this:
Dangle Number Nine
No, this isn’t a section about dangling center Sam Bennett in trade talks, even though he’s coming off a career year and the Panthers could leverage a strong return for his services in a weak center market. They’d also still be well-set with Aleksander Barkov returning and Anton Lundell anchoring the second line.
Instead, this is about their draft pick, which is slotted ninth overall. While Florida could obviously benefit in the long run from adding an impactful prospect to the mix, one whose early cost control could really pay dividends in a few years when he’s ready to make the jump to the NHL. But the Panthers aren’t the typical team with a top-ten pick. They’re a perceived contender coming off a season where basically anything that could go wrong did go wrong.
Despite the poor finish this season, the expectation is that Florida will be back in the playoffs next season. The composition of their roster remains in win-now mode. With that in mind, the ninth pick next month may very well be their best trade chip to utilize to get a win-now piece to try to quickly vault them back to contention. And if there isn’t a viable trade over the next six weeks, they can always make the pick and use the player as a potential trade chip later in the season.
Photo courtesy of Geoff Burke-Imagn Images.
Wild Tried To Acquire Robert Thomas At Trade Deadline
An impactful top center has been atop Minnesota’s wish list for many years now. While Joel Eriksson Ek is a quality top-six middleman, they haven’t been able to find the pivot to help round out their top six. It appears that they attempted to do so before the trade deadline, however, with Michael Russo and Joe Smith of The Athletic reporting (subscription link) that the Wild made a pitch to acquire Robert Thomas from the Blues. Included in the proposed package were goaltender Jesper Wallstedt and center Danila Yurov.
Back in March, the expectation was that the Blues were seeking at least three top-15-level assets (players, prospects, or draft picks) plus maybe more if they were going to part with Thomas. Wallstedt and Yurov, though both picked just outside the top-15, probably would meet the criteria, but it’s unclear what else Minnesota was offering in their package. Their 2026 first-round pick was moved in the Quinn Hughes trade earlier this season, making their 2027 first a logical piece, although it’s unlikely that the Wild will be in the back of the lottery next summer.
Thomas would certainly have been a needle-mover for Minnesota. The 26-year-old surpassed the 80-point mark in 2023-24 and 2024-25 and would have had a chance to do so this season had he not missed 18 games due to injury. Still, Thomas put up 64 points in 64 outings. He also took a regular turn on the penalty kill and would have given Minnesota an all-around impactful center, one who is signed through 2030-31 at an $8.125MM AAV that will become even more team-friendly in the coming years.
That said, it’s understandable that the Blues wouldn’t view Wallstedt and Yurov as being viable centerpieces of a trade for their best forward. It’s not that neither is a quality player but rather that the fit on the roster is less certain.
Wallstedt’s first full NHL season was a successful one. He worked his way into a platoon with Filip Gustavsson, getting into 35 games during the regular season where he had a solid 2.65 GAA with a .915 SV% along with four shutouts. He then took over as the starter for Minnesota’s playoff run, compiling a 2.77 GAA and a .909 SV%, numbers that are skewed by the opening game of the Colorado series that saw him allow eight goals. But while he’s certainly a quality young goaltender, St. Louis has Joel Hofer in the mix already and are likely envisioning him as their goalie of the future. He and Wallstedt would make for an enticing tandem, but moving a top center for a tandem piece might not be the most practical for them.
As for Yurov, he had a decent first season in North America. The 22-year-old potted 12 goals and 15 assists in 73 games, playing primarily in the bottom six. He also stuck down the middle all season although there are some questions about his ability to stay there long-term. That’s where the fit with the Blues becomes less certain. Yes, he’s a promising player but if St. Louis is going to move their top center, they’d probably prefer a youngster coming back who is more of a safer bet to be a top-six middleman down the road.
Given that Minnesota’s need still exists and Wallstedt’s value is likely higher now than it was back at the deadline based on his playoff performance, it wouldn’t be entirely shocking to see GM Bill Guerin circle back on this. And if it doesn’t pan out, the two youngsters represent intriguing trade chips to try to bring in a quality center to make their roster that much more dangerous.
Juuso Valimaki In Talks With SHL Brynas
For several years, defenseman Juuso Valimaki was a regular at the NHL level. However, he didn’t see any time at the top level this season, playing exclusively in the minors. A pending unrestricted free agent, it appears he’s not waiting to see what options await him on the open market. Instead, Expressen’s Mattias Persson and Johan Svensson report that the blueliner is in extended discussions to join SHL Brynas next season.
The 27-year-old was a first-round pick by Calgary back in 2017, going 16th overall. He saw action in parts of three seasons with the Flames and after a 49-game showing in 2020-21, they saw fit to sign him to a $1.55MM per season bridge deal. That contract wound up helping him clear waivers the following season but in 2022, he wasn’t able to sneak through, instead being claimed by Arizona.
With the Coyotes, he became a full-timer on their back end, playing in 78 games after being picked up, earning himself a one-year extension in the process. Then, after logging over 19 minutes a night in 2023-24, Valimaki received a two-year, $4MM pact and it looked as if he was finally going to get some stability.
Instead, Utah (after the Coyotes moved) bolstered its back end, pushing Valimaki down to the seventh spot last season and off the roster altogether in 2025-26. History repeated itself with the blueliner being waived in training camp and clearing, sending him off to AHL Tucson where injuries limited him to three games in as many months. Then, the Hurricanes acquired him in January to give themselves some extra defensive depth although he has yet to see action with Carolina. Instead, his regular season ended with 23 points in 27 games while he has four points in six playoff contests with AHL Chicago so far.
It appears that Valimaki will be taking quite a pay cut on this eventual deal. Persson and Svensson note that he was seeking a EUR300K deal initially (worth around $349K in USD) but that the contract is expected to come in for considerably less. Given his NHL experience and AHL success, it stands to reason that he easily could have been that on even a two-way deal in North America this summer. Accordingly, it appears that Valimaki will be leaving some money on the table to play closer to home.
Golden Knights Make Black Ace Recalls
It has certainly been a whirlwind few days for the Golden Knights, who are off to the third round but down a second-round pick in the process. With their AHL affiliate in Henderson being eliminated last weekend by Colorado, Vegas has made its Black Ace recalls. Per the AHL’s transactions log, they’ve recalled forwards Tanner Laczynski, Raphael Lavoie, Jonas Rondbjerg, and Kai Uchacz, along with defensemen Jeremy Davies and Jaycob Megna.
Laczynski was the leading scorer for the Silver Knights this season, potting 22 goals and 42 assists in 62 games, setting a new benchmark in points by far as his previous high was 44 points. He could have added to that total had he not made ten appearances with Vegas where he was relatively productive in a limited role, adding five assists despite playing less than 11 minutes per game of ice time. While he has just 56 games of NHL experience, he has seen time at the top level in five of the last six seasons.
Lavoie’s journey to the Golden Knights last season was a bit of an adventure, featuring near-daily stints on the waiver wire at the end of training camp as he landed in a tug of war between them and Edmonton. He played almost exclusively in the minors this season aside from one game with Vegas and was quite productive with Henderson, recording 30 goals and 26 assists in just 45 appearances. He is still looking for his first NHL point and has 17 career appearances at the top level.
Rondbjerg has seen action with the Golden Knights in five straight years, spanning 80 games, where he has three goals and eight assists. However, he only got into four outings with them this season as he dropped a little lower on the depth chart. The 27-year-old had 13 goals and 13 assists in 43 games with the Silver Knights and has been remarkably consistent at that level. Over his past five AHL seasons, he has ranged between 25 and 28 points.
Uchacz is the one prospect out of this group. He made his NHL debut late in the season with three appearances and had a strong sophomore campaign in the minors. In 68 games this season, he finished third on Henderson in scoring with 20 goals and 31 assists, besting his rookie-year point total by 21.
Among the blueliners, Davies hasn’t seen NHL action since the 2022-23 campaign. However, he has been a productive player in the minors in recent years, checking in just shy of the 50-point mark in each of the last two seasons. This year, Davies had nine goals and 38 assists in 72 games to tie for the team lead in points by a blueliner.
Megna is the oldest of the group at 33. He has seen NHL action in five straight seasons, spanning five different organizations as he has bounced around as a depth defender. He played in just four games for Vegas in 2025-26, bringing his career total to 197. With the Silver Knights, Megna had 11 points in 64 games.
It’s unlikely any of these players will be called on to suit up in the third round against Colorado, barring a significant run of injuries. However, they’ll keep skating in the meantime to be ready if their number ultimately gets called.