Flyers Sign Alex Ciernik To Entry-Level Deal
The Flyers announced this afternoon that they’ve signed winger Alex Ciernik to a three-year, entry-level deal beginning next season.
Ciernik, 21, was a fourth-round pick back in 2023 who still had another year before Philly risked losing his signing rights. The son of former NHLer Ivan Ciernik, the Slovak national was selected out of Södertälje SK in Sweden’s second division, where he’s spent most of his development since. He was a solid producer in that league on subsequent stops with Västerviks IK and the Nybro Vikings from 2023-25, posting a 15-22–37 scoring line in 72 games across those two seasons, and even got his first look in North America on a tryout with AHL Lehigh Valley to close out last year.
Ciernik’s offense saw significant regression here in 2025-26, though. He started the season against the toughest competition of his career, transferring to Finland’s top-division Liiga to suit up for Pelicans. He managed just three points in 19 games before being released, though. He opted to return to Nybro to finish out the year, but his sluggish pace persisted, putting up only a 2-3–5 scoring line with a -7 rating in 21 outings.
It’s a tad surprising to see Philly extend an entry-level offer with his stock at a low point, but they’ve evidently liked the whole body of work the 5’10” winger has provided over the last few years. Charlie O’Connor of PHLY Sports ranked Ciernik as the #20 prospect in the system last month, and according to Dobber Prospects, he’s the eighth-ranked winger in their system. The deal, which PuckPedia reports carries a $1.008MM cap hit, is not eligible for a slide and will make him a restricted free agent at age 24 in 2029.
Red Wings Reassign Axel Sandin-Pellikka
The Red Wings announced that they’ve reassigned defenseman Axel Sandin Pellikka to AHL Grand Rapids. It’s the first minor-league stint of the season for the rookie, who was temporarily assigned to Grand Rapids at the trade deadline to make him eligible to suit up in the AHL down the stretch.
While Sandin-Pellikka was promptly recalled back to the NHL roster on deadline day, he hasn’t played since. He was usurped from his second-pairing role alongside Ben Chiarot when the team acquired veteran Justin Faulk from the Blues, pushing the righty to the press box. He’s now been scratched in seven straight contests after appearing in 63 consecutive games to begin his NHL career.
A gifted puck-mover, Detroit selected Sandin-Pellikka 17th overall in 2023. The hope was that he could be a plug-and-play top-four piece after parts of three seasons of professional hockey in his native Sweden. He got that kind of deployment to start the season after a strong training camp. The results haven’t been pretty, though. He has posted a 6-13–19 scoring line but has paired it with a team-worst -21 rating while his ice time has slowly eroded. Only seven of those points came on the power play, as he was quarterbacking the team’s second unit before Faulk’s arrival.
His development isn’t served by sitting and watching, at least not for this long a stretch. As such, Detroit will get the 6’0″ righty some premier minutes in Grand Rapids, where he’s eligible to stay through the postseason. He’ll be logging well over 20 minutes a night there as he looks to get his game back and re-establish himself as a full-time NHLer next fall.
Projecting Patrik Laine’s Future After This Season
Canadiens forward Patrik Laine is headed for free agency this summer. Despite a limited free agent market, he isn’t expected to attract much interest after another season marred by injuries.
Laine has only played five games this season, with just one assist, and until the trade deadline, he was a frequent topic of trade rumors as Montreal hoped to clear salary. Reports indicate he was mentioned in discussions with both the Maple Leafs and Flyers.
Laine hasn’t been a good fit with the Canadiens, and as summer approaches, it’s almost certain he will be wearing a different NHL jersey next season, likely at a cap hit significantly lower than his current $8.7MM salary. The question remains whether NHL teams will be interested and whether a good fit exists for the 2016 second overall pick.
Despite the injuries and inconsistencies that have challenged Laine’s career over the past half-decade, his shot remains among the best in the NHL, especially from long range, where he continues to be an elite scorer even if he hasn’t displayed his full skill set this year. Last season, Laine scored 20 goals in just 52 games, and he still likely projects as a 20- to 25-goal scorer despite limitations in nearly every other aspect of his game.
But that is the core issue with Laine: he is limited in what he can do, and his analytics away from the puck are appalling. This will cause many NHL teams to hesitate before considering him a viable free-agent target.
Laine has long been a liability in puck possession, and it wasn’t any better last season, when he was mainly used in an offensive role but still hindered his teammates’ possession. Given his health concerns, especially regarding his skating and agility, it’s unlikely these metrics will improve. This means any team that acquires Laine will need to isolate and shelter him, which is acceptable if he is earning close to the league minimum on a one-year deal.
When considering comparables, there aren’t many. In fact, this year, AFP Analytics can’t even project Laine’s potential contract for the 2026-27 season because there isn’t enough information available on Laine, which makes sense given that he’s only played five games this season.
A potential comparison who is by no means an exact match would be Anthony Mantha of the Penguins, who is currently earning $2.5MM on a one-year “prove it” deal he signed last summer. Mantha had a consistent track record of scoring 20 goals before last season, but he suffered a season-ending ACL injury and missed most of the year with the Calgary Flames. After posting just seven points in 13 games with Calgary, the 31-year-old bet on himself last summer, and it appears to be paying off as he looks set to be one of the top UFAs available this summer, which should give him a chance at a long-term contract in the coming years.
Although Mantha and Laine are very different players, there aren’t many better comparisons, but Jeff Skinner provides another example of what free agency could mean for Laine. Skinner has spent the last two seasons signing one-year, $3MM contracts as a UFA. However, like Mantha, he is over 30, at 33. Similar to Laine, Skinner is a fairly one-dimensional offensive player who can score goals but does little else, especially away from the puck, where he’s not exactly a Selke Trophy candidate.
Looking at Mantha and Skinner as reasonable comparables, since both are wingers, have notable flaws in their games, and can score, what can Laine expect in free agency? Mantha received a one-year, $2.5MM deal last summer, while Skinner signed a one-year, $3MM contract with San Jose.
Laine has several factors that position him above Mantha and Skinner. Laine was the second overall pick; he’s three years younger than Mantha was during his recent free agency and five years younger than Skinner. There’s a solid argument that Laine is a purer goal scorer than both Mantha and Skinner, which is mainly shown by his NHL career goal numbers. All these points suggest that Laine deserves a larger payday than both Mantha and Skinner.
But Mantha is arguably a more complete player than Laine, and Skinner has a longer track record of scoring goals than Laine. Those factors will work against Laine, but overall, he probably deserves a more substantial one-year contract than Mantha or Skinner received last summer. That said, this is a very thin free-agent crop, and teams will be desperate on July 1st to add scoring, which could make Laine appealing to more than one team despite the warts on his resume.
Where Laine ends up remains uncertain, but some contending teams facing the salary cap hurdle would likely be interested in acquiring a motivated, scoring forward at a low cost. Colorado and Dallas come to mind as possible destinations, as do the Penguins, who may lose Mantha to free agency unless they can negotiate a deal. In any case, Laine desperately needs to find a suitable fit if he wants to secure another lucrative NHL contract.
Niko Mikkola, Uvis Balinskis Out For Season
Niko Mikkola‘s and Uvis Balinskis‘ seasons are over. The Panthers defenders are both out four to six weeks with a knee injury and an undisclosed fracture, respectively, head coach Paul Maurice told Jameson Olive of NHL.com. Both will be ready for training camp in the fall.
Mikkola, 29, entered the season at a high point in his career. The 6’6″, 204-lb shutdown lefty excelled in a top-four role for the Cats with a career-high 22 points and +12 rating en route to their second straight Stanley Cup. He cashed in as a result, landing an eight-year, $40MM extension late in training camp that kicks in starting next season. He finishes his 2025-26 campaign with a 3-8–11 scoring line in 68 games with a -1 rating, averaging 20:21 of ice time per game.
It wasn’t a huge dropoff by any means, but this was clearly Mikkola’s worst season out of his three in Florida. His 1.71 hits per game were his lowest since his rookie season with the Blues, and his 51.8% Corsi For percentage and 50.9% expected goals for percentage at 5-on-5 were good, but still his worst possession outputs as a Panther. He was without his usual partner, Seth Jones, for over two months due to an upper-body injury, which played a significant role in that dropoff. Jones’ injury forced Balinskis to step into a top-four role for much of the last several weeks, and those results were disastrous: just a 41.1 xGF% and a team-worst 3.16 xGA/60, per MoneyPuck.
Balinskis, 29, has been fine in a more sheltered third-pairing role on his natural left side but hasn’t been able to handle elevated minutes, especially when forced onto his off side. The 6’0″ Latvian averaged a career-high 16:22 ice time per game across 54 contests, contributing a 5-10–15 scoring line, but had a career-worst -13 rating while seeing a dropoff in his shot attempt creation from 2.61 per game last season to 2.43. He has the worst possession numbers on Florida’s blue line across the board (min. 100 minutes at 5-on-5) with a 50.7 CF%, 46.7 xGF%, and 50.2% scoring chances for percentage, per Natural Stat Trick.
With Florida out of playoff contention, the absences will only serve for depth names – namely, the recently recalled Michael Benning – to get more consistent reps down the stretch. Jones returned to the lineup a few games ago, so Florida’s defense isn’t in complete disarray, but they’re now down to six healthy names on the active roster and will likely recall a name from AHL Charlotte before tomorrow’s game against the Kraken for insurance.
Mammoth Sign Caleb Desnoyers To Entry-Level Deal
The Mammoth announced they’ve signed top center prospect Caleb Desnoyers to his three-year entry-level deal. TVA’s Renaud Lavoie reports it starts next season, making him ineligible for NHL action down the stretch. That makes sense considering he wouldn’t be eligible to turn pro until his postseason run with the QMJHL’s league-best Moncton Wildcats, which will get underway on Friday, comes to an end, which will likely stretch past the end of Utah’s regular season barring an early upset.
Desnoyers, who’ll celebrate his 19th birthday next month, entered the year as a consensus top-30 prospect in hockey and has largely held up that reputation with another All-Star season in Moncton. The Quebec native was the fourth overall pick in last year’s draft and, after guiding Moncton to a QMJHL championship while taking home postseason MVP honors, has now put up a 22-56–78 scoring line in just 45 regular-season games this year. He missed the first couple of weeks after undergoing offseason wrist surgery and then sustained a separate injury before finally getting into the lineup consistently in the back half. His 1.73 points per game this season led the QMJHL (min. 25 games), along with a +36 rating from the 6’2″, 179-lb middleman.
He’s Utah’s consensus top prospect but is realistically in step with the Mammoth’s top-10 selection in 2024, Tij Iginla, who also figures to make his NHL debut next year after racking up 41 goals and 90 points in just 48 WHL games for the Kelowna Rockets. While QMJHL point totals are often inflated in a much weaker defensive environment than its WHL and OHL counterparts, he’s still the cream of the crop there and has been as a 17- and 18-year-old, rather than a talent on the edge of aging out of junior hockey.
Desnoyers’ ELC is for the new maximum laid out in last year’s CBA extension, per PuckPedia. That breaks down as follows:
2026-27: $922.5K NHL salary, $102.5K signing bonus, up to $3.15MM in performance bonuses, $85K minors salary
2027-28: $967.5K NHL salary, $107.5K signing bonus, up to $3.15MM in performance bonuses, $85K minors salary
2028-29: $1.013MM NHL salary, $112.5K signing bonus, up to $3.15MM in performance bonuses, $85K minors salary
It’s worth noting that Desnoyers is still young enough to be slide-eligible if he doesn’t play in 10 NHL games next season. The new AHL loan agreement the NHL is drafting with the CHL should also allow him to spend next season in the minors with Tucson if he’s not on the big-league roster, rather than sending him back to Moncton, as the Mammoth would have had to do under the previous agreement.
Maple Leafs Recall Dennis Hildeby
The Maple Leafs announced they’ve recalled goaltender Dennis Hildeby from AHL Toronto on an emergency basis. He could dress tomorrow against the Bruins in place of Anthony Stolarz, who was scheduled to start Saturday night’s loss to the Senators but had to go to the hospital to get checked out after taking a puck to the throat during warmups. Stolarz skated with the team before practice this morning, sporting a neck guard, per Nick Barden of The Hockey News, so he shouldn’t miss too much time.
It has been an incredibly trying season for the 32-year-old Stolarz, losing his tenuous grip on the Leafs’ starting job to Joseph Woll. After back-to-back seasons of leading the league in save percentage in limited tandem/backup deployment, his numbers have taken a nosedive to a .894 SV%, 3.34 GAA, and 8-9-3 record in 21 starts and one relief appearance. He has accounted for -8.2 goals saved above expected after a great 25.8 figure last season, per MoneyPuck. That led to Toronto making him available at the trade deadline despite him signing a four-year, $15MM extension last September, but no deal was made.
Injuries have long stopped the high-ceiling Stolarz from ever becoming a true #1 option. That hasn’t changed this year. A lingering upper-body injury kept him out of the lineup for over two months earlier this year, rendering him unavailable for 33 games. With the playoffs out of reach in Toronto, there’s no reason for the Leafs to rush him back after what was surely a scary ordeal on Saturday, even if he’s been cleared.
For what it’s worth, they have a great third-string option in Hildeby. The 24-year-old was exceptional as Woll’s backup earlier this year when Stolarz was sidelined, recording a .910 SV%, 2.90 GAA and seven quality starts in 19 total outings. A lack of goal support meant he posted a 5-6-4 record, but his 8.9 goals saved above expected during that run are still far ahead of what Woll and Stolarz have produced with far more usage. With Hildeby losing his waiver-exempt status next season, the Leafs will want to find a way to keep him around.
Blues Sign Felix Trudeau To Entry-Level Deal
The Blues announced this morning that they’ve signed college free agent left-winger Felix Trudeau to a two-year, entry-level contract. The deal begins next season, but he’ll still have a chance to make his pro debut down the stretch on a tryout with AHL Springfield, the team said.
According to PuckPedia, Trudeau’s deal carries a cap hit of $1.014MM. He will be paid a base salary of $850K, a signing bonus of $102.5K, and a minors salary of $85K in 2026-27 with additional performance bonuses up to $72.5K. In 2027-28, those base salary and signing bonus figures jump to $967.6K and $107.5K with no performance bonus potential. The Blues, who now control Trudeau’s rights through 2030, will owe him a $1.06MM qualifying offer in the summer of 2028.
Trudeau, 23, saw his collegiate career come to an end this past weekend when his Sacred Heart Pioneers dropped the Atlantic Hockey America championship game to Bentley. The 6’2″, 190-lb forward was a depth piece for the University of Maine as a freshman and sophomore, but emerged as a star in Connecticut for Sacred Heart after transferring there in 2024.
The Quebec native has led his club in scoring each of the past two seasons, ending his career with a spectacular 25-23–48 run in 39 games with a whopping 87 penalty minutes and a +14 rating. The hard-nosed winger was one of the 10 finalists for the Hobey Baker Award, given to the NCAA’s top men’s hockey player, announced last week. Along with that, he was named the AHA’s forward and player of the year while tying for sixth in the country in scoring, second among undrafted free agents behind Michigan’s T.J. Hughes, who will be landing an NHL deal as soon as the #1-ranked Wolverines’ run toward a national championship ends.
It’s always harder to gauge the projectability of players coming from non-power Division I conferences. Despite finishing as the runner-up to Bentley for the championship honors, Sacred Heart was still only ranked 29th out of 63 DI teams in the year-end NCAA Percentage Index. Playing against weaker competition will have inflated his point totals somewhat compared to Big Ten, Hockey East, and NCHC stars, but his power-forward style could make him an effective bottom-six piece if his offense doesn’t translate well to the pro game. As Daily Faceoff’s Steven Ellis notes, though, he’ll need to work on his skating in Springfield before challenging for an NHL call-up.
Hurricanes, Kraken To Play 2026 Global Series In Finland
The Hurricanes and Kraken will play a pair of games in Helsinki, Finland, on Nov. 12 and 14 next season as part of the 2026 Global Series, the league announced. That brings the NHL’s total regular-season games in Europe next year to four, following the previously announced pair of dates between the Blackhawks and Senators in Düsseldorf, Germany, in December.
It will be the first time either Carolina or Seattle has played a regular-season game under the Global Series designator. The Kraken have not played a game that counts outside North America in their five active seasons as a franchise, while the Canes haven’t gone overseas since opening up their 2010-11 season with a back-to-back against the Wild, also in Helsinki.
While neither club boasts Finnish NHL talent to rival the Stars’ Finnish mafia, there will be some high-powered homegrown talent in that game – namely, Carolina star center Sebastian Aho. He’ll be joined by teammate Jesperi Kotkaniemi as Finnish Carolinians under contract through next season. Seattle’s roster boasts another three Finnish forwards – Kaapo Kakko, Jani Nyman, and Eeli Tolvanen – although Tolvanen is a pending unrestricted free agent.
Finland has been one of the NHL’s most frequented destinations for European events. The country ranks third in the IIHF men’s world rankings, has medaled in five of the last six Winter Olympics, and accounts for roughly 5% of the NHL’s active player base.
It will be the league’s first time going to Veikkaus Arena (formerly known as Hartwall Arena) in Helsinki since 2018, though. The last two Global Series in Finland, 2022’s games between the Blue Jackets and Avalanche and 2024’s between the Panthers and Stars, were played at Nokia Arena in Tampere, the second-largest urban area in the country by population. Veikkaus Arena was closed for the last several years as the Finnish government went through the process of seizing it from its previous Russian ownership amid their invasion of Ukraine, opening back up last summer.
Five Key Stories: 3/16/26 – 3/22/26
We’re barely a month removed from the Olympics but the next best-on-best competition is now on the books. That’s among our key stories from the past seven days.
World Cup Of Hockey Returns: The last time there was a World Cup of Hockey was back in 2016 when the tournament was held before the season began. Now, the event is slated to return in 2028 with a midseason event to be held during what would have been the All-Star break, similar to the 4 Nations Face-Off last year. Unlike that event, this one will feature eight different teams playing a total of 17 games. Calgary and Prague will host half of the round robin section of the tournament while Edmonton will host the medal round. The intention is to hold this every four years, meaning that there will be a best-on-best event every two years with the Olympics also being held every four years.
Crosby Returns: The Penguins got a significant boost to their lineup when captain Sidney Crosby was activated off injured reserve. Injured while playing for Canada at the Olympics, he was initially expected to miss a minimum of four weeks. Instead, he came back ahead of schedule, with Pittsburgh holding its own in his absence with a 5-3-3 record. Still, as the Penguins look to hold onto a playoff spot that few expected heading into the season, getting their leading scorer back will certainly help their chances in a tight Wild Card and Metropolitan Division battle. Crosby had three points in his first two games back in the lineup.
Oilers Down A Star: It has been a tough year for the Oilers. Viewed as a contender heading into the season, they instead find themselves in a dogfight to simply make the playoffs (though they’re within striking distance of the division lead as well, to be fair). However, their postseason push just got a lot harder with center Leon Draisaitl is dealing with a lower-body injury and is expected to miss the remainder of the regular season. He was subsequently placed on LTIR, meaning a minimum absence of 10 games and 24 days. The 30-year-old was well on his way to his fifth straight 100-point season before the injury. His 2025-26 campaign ends with 35 goals and 62 assists in 65 games and he’ll now hope that his teammates can get to the playoffs so he’ll have a chance to return.
Two For Carcone: After not getting the types of offers he wanted after saying he’d leave Utah last summer, Michael Carcone ultimately re-signed with the Mammoth. That proved to be the right move as he’s had a bounce-back year, earning himself a two-year, $3.5MM extension for his efforts. The 29-year-old had a breakout campaign in 2023-24 with Arizona, tallying 21 goals but he struggled last season. However, he has played his way back into a full-time bottom-six role this season and has been productive, tallying 14 goals and 12 assists in 67 games. This will be the first time that Carcone will make more than $775K in a season.
Three For Greer: Earlier this week, George Parros met the media to discuss and defend some of the recent decisions from the Department of Player Safety. The department is back in the discussion once again following its decision to suspend Panthers forward A.J. Greer for three games for a hit on Calgary’s Connor Zary. Greer shoved Zary from behind toward the boards a fair distance away from the boards, resulting in an upper-body injury for the youngster. This is the second suspension of Greer’s career, and he will be eligible to return to Florida’s lineup next Sunday.
Photo courtesy of Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images.
Stars Notes: Rantanen, Hintz, Faksa, Robertson
There’s some light at the end of the tunnel on the injury front for Dallas. Speaking on DFW The Ticket’s Bruce LeVine (all Twitter links), GM Jim Nill indicated that winger Mikko Rantanen is nearing a return to the lineup.
Injured back in the Olympics, the 29-year-old still sits third on the team in scoring despite missing the last 12 games, tallying 20 goals and 49 assists in 54 games in his first full season in Dallas. Nill noted that he has been skating on his own for the last week and is expected to accompany the team on their upcoming four-game road trip. If all goes well, he could return for one of the back-to-back games against Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
Dallas is only three points behind Colorado heading into tonight’s action for first in the Western Conference, a spot that would give them a much easier matchup in the first round compared to taking on Minnesota, one of the top teams in the league. Getting Rantanen back with a couple of weeks left in the season would certainly give them a boost in that pursuit.
Unfortunately for the Stars, the other injury news isn’t quite as positive. Nill added that center Roope Hintz has yet to resume skating as he continues to battle a lower-body injury that has kept him out for a little more than two weeks. At this point, the team is hopeful that the 29-year-old could be back for the final week of the season or the start of the playoffs. Hintz has played in 53 games this season, collecting 19 goals and 25 assists.
Meanwhile, Radek Faksa’s situation is even murkier. Nill noted that the center is dealing with a “unique injury” with “really no history as far as healing time.” As a result, there is no timetable for his return although they are hopeful that he could be ready for the playoffs. In his first season back with Dallas after returning in free agency this summer, Faksa has 17 points in 56 games while being their most-used forward on the penalty kill.
Nill was also asked about Jason Robertson’s contract discussions. The winger is slated to become a restricted free agent this summer where he will be owed a qualifying offer of $9.3MM. He’ll also only be one season away from UFA eligibility and could simply elect to go for a hearing, take a one-year award, and test the open market in 2027. That’s an outcome the Stars are clearly hoping to avoid.
Nill indicated that he has held discussions with Robertson’s new representation; back in January, both Robertson brothers hired Octagon’s Andy Scott as their new agent. However, with the stretch run and playoffs ahead, both sides agree that they want the 26-year-old focused on playing at the moment. That suggests that future talks have been tabled for the time being and will be rekindled in the offseason. Robertson is the leading scorer for the Stars this season, picking up 38 goals and 44 assists in 69 games. It’s the fourth straight season that he has reached the 80-point mark.