The Buffalo Sabres have a confirmed interest in Mike Futa of the Los Angeles Kings as a candidate for their next GM, and were granted permission to talk to him about the position. John Vogl of the Buffalo News clarifies the situation, reporting that they have not asked for any discussion with Dean Lombardi. Futa was just promoted to assistant GM a few weeks ago after working as the team’s director of player personnel under Lombardi. He also was a finalist for the Buffalo job that eventually went to Murray back in 2014, along with Jason Botterill who was also confirmed in the running this time around.
Futa has been rumored to be in the mix for GM openings around the league for the past few years, but had been previously unsuccessful and deemed too important in Los Angeles. While the new regime—Rob Blake and Luc Robitaille—clearly value his position in the front office, they likely wouldn’t stop him from taking the step up to be “the man” in Buffalo.
- Kevin Fiala is on his way home from the hospital according to Cassie Campbell of Hockey Night in Canada. The Predators forward is actually walking already on the advice of doctors, and will now face a four to six month recovery time after fracturing his left femur. That injury is extremely dangerous, and Fiala was rushed into surgery immediately after sustaining it on Wednesday. He’ll be lucky to be ready for the start of training camp, but the Predators will have him back in the lineup next year.
- Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News reports that Kristian Vesalainen, a top prospect in the upcoming entry draft, has signed a one-year contract with HPK of the Finnish Liiga. The last few seasons Vesalainen had been playing in Sweden for Frolunda, but spent some time with HPK on loan near the end of the year. The Finnish winger recently was awarded MVP honors at the U18 Worlds, scoring 13 points in 7 games and leading Finland to a silver medal. He was ranked seventh among European skaters in the latest list from NHL Central Scouting, but may rise as high as the top-10 by draft day. He’ll stay in Finland next season before discussing with whichever team drafts him where he should continue his development.