Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

NHL

Sidney Crosby, Mikko Rantanen Healthy For 4 Nations Face-Off

at CDT | by 2 Comments

Team Canada is celebrating after just one practice for the 4 Nations Face-Off, following news that international superstar Sidney Crosby will be good to go when Canada kicks off the tournament on Thursday, per Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic. This news comes after Crosby missed the Pittsburgh Penguins’ last two games with an upper-body injury. He practiced in full at Canada’s Monday skate, serving on the team’s second line and filling the net-front role on the top power-play unit. Crosby also serves as Canada’s captain, as he has at the country’s last three international events with NHL talent.

Team Canada will be at relatively full strength with news of Crosby’s health. The team has no shortage of superstar talent – boasting Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, and Cale Makar, arguably the three top players in the NHL. But the Canadian crest doesn’t shine the same without Crosby being part of the group. His international highlights are enough to satisfy an entire career. Crosby famously scored Canada’s “Golden Goal” at the 2010 Winter Olympics to pull the country ahead of Team USA in the Gold Medal game. He had seven points in seven games in that tournament and added three more in six games of the 2014 Olympics, where Canada repeated their Gold Medal win with a team led in scoring by Shea Weber and Drew Doughty. Crosby has only appeared in two international events since that second gold, netting 11 points in nine games of the 2014 World Championship and scoring 10 points in six games of the 2016 World Cup. His presence and international track record will make Canada the country to beat early in this year’s tournament.

The shorthanded Team Finland has received similarly bright news, with Finnish coach Antti Pennanen sharing that Mikko Rantanen will join the team for their first game against Team USA per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. That’s a key bit of news with defensemen Miro Heiskanen, Jani Hakanpää, and Rasmus Ristolainen ruled out for the event due to injuries, leaving them with names like Nikolas Matinpalo and Urho Vaakanainen on their blue line.

Rantanen has represented Finland at every step of his pro hockey career. He appeared in two World Juniors with Finland in 2015 and 2016, totaling nine points in 12 games and captaining the team in the latter tournament. Rantanen also represented Finland at the 2016 World Championship, marking the first of four appearances at the international tourney. He’s totaled 31 points in 31 World Championship games and stands as potentially Finland’s biggest scoring threat at the 4 Nations Face-Off. Rantanen’s role in the lineup isn’t yet clear, but he will likely support the team’s top line and top power-play unit next to Aleksander Barkov and one of Sebastian Aho, Mikael Granlund, or Artturi Lehkonen.

Blackhawks Receiving Trade Interest In Pat Maroon

at CDT | by 16 Comments

Amid another season near the bottom of the standings, the Chicago Blackhawks seem to be on a clear path to selling off veteran talents at this year’s trade deadline. Recent reports suggest that productive center Ryan Donato, previously thought to be one of the team’s top trade candidates, could still sign an extension with the Blackhawks. That change has pushed 36-year-old winger Pat Maroon into the spotlight on Chicago’s trade block. Multiple teams are circling the waters on the tough veteran, per Daily Faceoff’s Jeff Marek, who adds that the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning could both be strong fits.

Maroon previously spent four seasons with the Lightning, starting in their Stanley Cup-winning season of 2019-20. He set his standard of play quickly in Tampa Bay, recording 23 points and 61 PIMs across 64 games in his first season. He continued the bruiser role into the shortened 2020-21 season, then ramped it up in 2021-22 by posting 27 points and 134 PIMs in 81 games. The Lightning returned to the Stanley Cup Final at the end of that year and, after losing to the Avalanche in six games, the burly Maroon decided to add yet another layer to his enforcer role in 2022-23. He scored just 14 points that season – a career-low up to that point – but managed a career-high and league-leading 150 PIMs in 80 games. The performance made Maroon one of just 44 players to eclipse 150 PIMs since 2010, and his 14 points tied for the 20th-highest among that bunch.

Maroon signed a two-year extension with Tampa Bay in February 2023, but the Lightning opted to send him to the Minnesota Wild for a sixth-round pick on the second day of free agency the following summer to clear cap space. Maroon found slightly more of a scoring touch in Minnesota with 16 points in 49 games, prompting the Wild to bank on his trade value at the 2024 Trade Deadline. They dealt him to the Boston Bruins in exchange for Luke Toporowski and a sixth-round pick. Maroon would go on to play just two regular season games and 13 playoff games in Boston before moving to Chicago on a one-year deal this summer.

Now, the league’s 12th-oldest forward could be headed for another move. He’s recorded 13 points and 71 PIMs in 49 games for the Blackhawks this season – an 82-game pace of 21 points and 119 PIMs. He may be in his golden years, but Maroon eclipsed 25 goals and 40 points at his career-best eight years ago. He’s amassed three Stanley Cup rings in his 14 years and 829 games in the NHL and eclipsed 1,000 career PIMs earlier this season. His tough, physical role and ability to control the net front haven’t diminished in his late 30s. Those traits could prove desirable for teams hoping for long playoff runs, though a trade likely won’t net Chicago a very lofty return.

Kraken’s Mitchell Stephens Clears Waivers, Victor Ostman Recalled

at CDT | by 2 Comments

2/10: Kraken forawrd Mitchell Stephens has cleared waivers, per a team report.

2/9: The Seattle Kraken announced a trio of roster moves on Sunday. Most notably, the team has placed forward Mitchell Stephens on waivers for the purpose of assigning him to the minor leagues. Stephens has appeared in Seattle’s  last 16 games. He contributed two points, six penalty minutes, and a minus-four while averaging just north of nine minutes in ice time. Seattle also reassigned defenseman Cale Fleury and goaltender Ales Stezka to the AHL, and recalled goaltender Victor Ostman from the ECHL’s Kansas City Mavericks.

Seattle does not play again until February 22nd, likely indicating that the moves of Stephens, Fleury, and Stezka are headed for AHL playing time during the 4-Nations Face-Off break. Ostman has been recalled to keep the team roster-compliant, and could be in store for an impromptu vacation while the team takes the next two weeks off. Ostman is playing in his rookie professional season this year, after spending the last four seasons vying for the starting role at the University of Maine. He’s performed well in his first pro games, already winning out the Mavericks’ starting role with an impressive 18-7-4 record and .905 save percentage in 29 games played. Ostman is playing in front of seasoned pro Jack LaFontaine, who has a 10-4-1 record and .904 Sv% in 16 games.

While Ostman questions what warm destination he’ll spend the next two weeks in, the Kraken will hold their breath to see if Stephens stays with the club while passing through waivers. He’s been a career depth-forward, alternating between the NHL and AHL lineups over the last six seasons. That stretch started in the 2019-20 season when Stephens made his NHL debut with the Tampa Bay Lightning, then had his name etched into the Stanley Cup just a few months later. He recorded six points, 10 penalty minutes, and a minus-nine in 38 games as an NHL rookie – with all four stats still standing as career-highs. Stephens has played in 82 NHL games in parts of four seasons since then, but only managed 13 points. He’s been far more productive in the minors, totaling 92 points in 139 AHL games since the start of the 2020-21 season. Stephens will get a chance to return to his AHL productivity, should he pass through waivers unclaimed.

Jesse Puljujarvi Signs PTO With Charlotte Checkers

at CDT | by 2 Comments

It appears the end of Jesse Puljujarvi’s contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins won’t yet mark the end of his stay in North America. The former fourth-overall draft pick has signed a professional try-out contract with the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers, per the AHL transactions log, joining the Panthers organization. Puljujarvi has been added to the Charlotte lineup, with Florida 2022 sixth-round pick Josh Davies headed to ECHL Savannah in a corresponding transaction

Puljujarvi agreed with the Penguins to mutually terminate his contract on Feb. 9th after he passed through unconditional waivers. The decision came on the heels of Puljujarvi’s second assignment to the minors on Feb. 7. He played his first AHL games of the season in January, recording three points across three games. But Puljujarvi couldn’t match that scoring at the NHL level, with just nine points in 26 NHL games this season. The performance was a continuation of Puljuarjvi’s struggles to score at the top flight. He has totaled a measly 29 points over his last 123 NHL games, spanning the last three seasons and four different clubs. Over that time, Puljujarvi has shot at just 5.7 percent and struggled to maintain roles in his teams’ top six.

Many expected Puljujarvi to follow his contract termination with a return to his home country of Finland, where he performed far better as a member of the Liiga’s Karpat. Puljujarvi made his Liiga debut in 2014-15, at the age of just 16 years old. He caught fire right away, netting 11 points in his first 21 Liiga games and backing it with 13 points in 15 Mestis games, Finland’s second-tier pro league. Puljujarvi followed that performance with a potent 28 points in 50 games the following year, which proved enough to earn him a top-five selection in a loaded 2016 draft class.

Puljujarvi moved to the North American pros immediately after being drafted by the Oilers. He immediately fell into the trap of high-end AHL scoring but snakebitten NHL play. He notched 28 points in 39 games in his first minor-league showing but was limited to 20 points in 65 appearances in his sophomore NHL campaign. Puljujarvi fought to buck the trend in the Edmonton Oilers lineup and, when he couldn’t, opted to return to the Liiga for the 2019-20 and part of the 2020-21 season after reaching restricted free agency. He instantly returned to productivity, with 65 points in 72 games across the season-and-a-half stay.

That proved a small spark, and Puljujarvi took advantage with 51 points in 120 NHL games in the two seasons after he returned. But those numbers couldn’t stick, and now it seems the once highly-touted Finn will opt to try and reinvigorate them by earning a chance in the minors rather than immediately returning to Finland. That could be the landing spot should he not find a match in Charlotte, though – a storyline that both the Florida Panthers organization and the hockey world will surely monitor closely.

Five Key Stories: 2/3/25 – 2/9/25

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Regular season action halted this evening as the league shifted its focus to the 4 Nations Face-Off. Trading dropped significantly compared to last week, but there was no lack of speculation. The league’s 32 general managers will have two weeks off to discuss trades before the regular season resumes on February 22nd. Let’s review some of the key stories from the week before turning our attention to the international best-on-best tournament.

Quick Extension For Pettersson: The Vancouver Canucks are once again in the headlines this week after making a pair of trades last week. They moved quickly on one of the players acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins in last week’s flurry of moves, signing defenseman Marcus Pettersson to a six-year, $33MM extension. The native of Skelleftea, Sweden now has the second-longest active contract on the Canucks’ blue line behind Filip Hronek despite having only played four games. Of course, it shouldn’t be considered a hasty extension given Patrik Allvin and Jim Rutherford’s familiarity with Pettersson dating back to their time in the Penguins organization.

Avs Still Looking To Deal: Despite connecting on the biggest in-season trade in recent memory, the Colorado Avalanche are reportedly still open for business. Multiple reports earlier in the week asserted the Avalanche were one of the teams to propose a trade to the Canucks for J.T. Miller before he ultimately went to the New York Rangers. The trade proposal did not persuade Vancouver away from their eventual deal with the Rangers. However, reports indicated the Avalanche were willing to trade Casey Mittelstadt in the proposal and remain open to moving him for a difference-maker. Aside from adding to their forward core, an additional report linked Colorado to San Jose Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro.

Center Trade Market Heating Up: As the deadline season approaches, there is a strong market for rental centers, and those with multiple years remaining on their contracts are also attracting interest. Dylan Cozens of the Buffalo Sabres has six years and $42.6MM left on his contract and has been in the rumor mill for much of the regular season. On Wednesday, Kevin Weekes from ESPN confirmed that the market for Cozens has specifically picked up with the Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, and Toronto Maple Leafs. Cozens wasn’t the only one as TSN’s Darren Dreger shared his belief that the St. Louis Blues are gauging interest in captain Brayden Schenn. The former Stanley Cup champion may prove more difficult to move with four years and $26MM remaining on his deal with a 15-team no-trade clause.

Hughes Out, Sanderson In For Team USA: A fear has become a reality for Team USA heading into the 4 Nations Face-Off. The Canucks shared this afternoon that defenseman Quinn Hughes has withdrawn himself from Team USA’s roster due to a nagging hand injury. As much as Hughes would have liked to participate in the best-on-best tournament, he’s putting his energy toward helping Vancouver compete for a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Replacing Hughes on the roster will be Ottawa’s Jake Sanderson, who suited up in one game for the United States during the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, China.

Ten For Hartman: The NHL’s Department of Player Safety got involved in the news this week bestowing a whopping 10-game suspension on Minnesota Wild forward Ryan Hartman for roughing Senators’ forward Tim Stützle. Hartman has a history of supplemental discipline throughout his career, leading to a lengthy suspension, but revealed a few days later that he will be appealing the decision. Should commissioner Gary Bettman uphold the suspension, it will be the longest since Radko Gudas, with the Philadelphia Flyers, was suspended for an identical length for slashing Winnipeg Jets’ forward Mathieu Perreault in the neck.

Photo courtesy of USA Sports Images. 

Predators Sign Adam Wilsby To Two-Year Extension

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Nashville Predators have signed defenseman Adam Wilsby to a two-year, $1.55MM contract extension. It will be a two-way contract in 2025-26 and a one-way deal in 2026-27. Wilsby has played in the first 23 games of his NHL career this season, netting five points, six penalty minutes, and a plus-three while averaging just over 18 minutes of ice time. He has also played in 13 minor league games, with five points, 10 penalty minutes, and a plus-five. Wilsby was set to be a restricted free agent at the end of the season, after signing a one-year, league-minimum deal with Nashville this summer.

Nashville originally drafted Wilsby in the fourth round of the 2020 NHL Draft out of Sweden’s HockeyAllsvenskan, the country’s second-tier pro league. He spent the two seasons following his draft with Skelleftea AIK of the SHL, where he carved out a solid role as a middle-pair defender. Wilsby totaled 35 points, 46 penalty minutes, and a scorching plus-42 in 99 games with Skelleftea, before moving to join the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals at the end of the 2021-22 season. He wouldn’t make it over in time for any regular season games, instead debuting in the minor league with three postseason games. Wilsby got a more formal start to his AHL career in the following year and quickly carved out another productive niche on Milwaukee’s second pair. He recorded 18 points and 32 penalty minutes in 72 games of his rookie AHL season and started to break out in the 2023 Calder Cup playoffs with eight points in 16 games. He’d return for much of the same last season – netting 24 points in 76 AHL games between the regular and post seasons.

Wilsby seemed doomed to repeat his productive minor-league role this season, until a trio of injuries and the trading of Alexandre Carrier forced Nashville to tap into their defense depth midseason. He earned the first call-up of his career on November 13th, after starting the year with five points, 10 penalty minutes, and a plus-five in his first 13 AHL games. Wilsby bounced between rosters over the next two weeks, before eventually making his NHL debut on November 27th. It’d take Wilsby eight games until he recorded his first point – an assist in a game he’d end with a plus-four and 22 minutes of ice times. He’d go on to score in his next two games and hasn’t looked back since. Wilsby has been on the NHL roster since late-November and played a career-high 22:36 of ice time in his most recent game – a 2-5 loss against the Ottawa Senators on February 3rd. He’s still working to bring his productive two-way play to the top flight, but his confidence in driving the puck through the neutral zone and getting shots on net is clearly growing. This two-year extension will be a bode of confidence from the Predators’ brass, and could give Wilsby the security he needs to start making a consistent impact on the NHL roster.

Kings Place Andreas Englund On Waivers, Reassign Pheonix Copley

at CDT | by 2 Comments

The Los Angeles Kings have made a pair of roster moves ahead of the 4-Nations Face-Off break, placing defenseman Andreas Englund on waivers for purpose of reassignment and sending goaltender Pheonix Copley back to the minor leagues per John Hoven of Mayor’s Manor. Both players have served as extras in the Kings lineup for much of the season. Englund played in spurts through October, November, and January – but it’s been nearly a month since he’s stepped into the lineup. He has just one goal in the 11 appearances he has made and averaged just 6:30 in ice time in the three games he played in January.

Originally an Ottawa Senators draft pick in 2014, Englund has fallen into the role of journeyman depth defender since leaving the Senators for a minor-league deal in Colorado in 2021. He’s a bruting six-foot-four, 200-pound defenseman who racked up over 100 penalty minutes in 57 games of the 2021-22 AHL season. That physical presence was enough to earn him an NHL deal and routine role with the Colorado Avalanche in 2022-23. He played 36 games with the NHL Colorado, and 15 games in the AHL, and scored three points in both leagues. He was traded late in the year to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for veteran defender Jack Johnson. Englund finished his year with 11 games and one point in the Chicago lineup.

The Blackhawks let Englund walk to free agency in the following summer, where he’d ultimately land a two-year, $2MM contract with the Kings. He’d go on to play in all 82 games of Los Angeles’ 2023-24 campaign. That consistency allowed him to set 10 points and 81 penalty minutes, both career-highs at the NHL level. He hasn’t had the same bid for the lineup this year, and now seems poised to spend the Kings’ two-weeks break on a return trip to the minor leagues.

Meanwhile, Copley has been the forgotten third in Los Angeles’ goalie room. He’s played in just one NHL game this season – a 2-1 loss against the Toronto Maple Leafs in October. Copley has been far more active in the minor leagues this year. In 20 games with the Ontario Reign, he’s set a 13-7-0 record and .906 save percentage. His save percentage leads the trio of Reign goaltenders, but his 13 wins are tied with Erik Portillo’s mark through 22 games. Portillo and Copley should rotate starts over the next two weeks, and the latter’s stay in the minors could stick now that Los Angeles has starter Darcy Kuemper back to full health.

Golden Knights Place William Karlsson on LTIR, Recall Three

at CDT | by 4 Comments

The Vegas Golden Knights are spending their final days before the 4-Nations Face-Off break by jumping through salary cap hoops. They’ve announced a litany of roster moves intended to maximize their cap space accrued from long-term injured reserve, all captured by PuckPedia. Vegas first recalled winger Alexander Holtz and goaltender Akira Schmid, then reassigned center Raphael Lavoie. Those moves placed them $135K under the cap ceiling. Vegas then placed top center William Karlsson on long-term injured reserve and recalled forward Jonas Rondbjerg, which they wouldn’t have been able to afford without shelving Karlsson. By recalling two players and getting as close to the cap ceiling as they could before moving Karlsson, Vegas maximized the amount of LTIR cap relief they were provided. They now sit with $5.133MM in available cap space, but will be one contract’s worth of cap over the limit when Karlsson is back to full health.

The string of moves were a great exercise in how to leverage the NHL’s LTIR policies, but Vegas will still be worse for wear without Karlsson. The 32-year-old centerman hasn’t played since January 20th, when he sustained a lower-body injury against the St. Louis Blues. He was immediately ruled out week-to-week, and the team still didn’t have a clear timeline for his return 10 days later. An LTIR placement will now force him out of the lineup through at least February 24th, the second game after Vegas returns from break.

Karlsson has continued to serve as a top center for the Golden Knights, but his season has been filled with abnormal scoring struggles. He has just 18 points in 38 games on the year, and was amidst a seven-game scoring slump prior to his injury. Karlsson has one assist in 10 games since the start of 2025. He’s still provided strong performances for the Golden Knights away from the scoresheet. He currently sits with a fantastic 58.9 percent faceoff win-rate that ranks Karlsson fifth among all NHL centers. Karlsson has also recorded 89 shots on goal and a plus-seven, respectively ranking him third and fifth among the team’s forwards.

Those numbers represent an impact that’ll be hard for Vegas to replace. Their flurry of moves leaves the task of filling in up to Rondbjerg and Holtz. The latter has far-and-away been the more popular fixture of Vegas’ lineup. Holtz has scored 11 points in 49 games this season, while Rondbjerg hasn’t yet scored through 10 appearances. The duo should both earn ice-time on Vegas’ left wing while the team deals with absences to Karlsson, Lavoie, Cole Schwindt, and Tanner Pearson.

Predators Acquire Mark Friedman From Canucks

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Vancouver Canucks have traded defenseman Mark Friedman to the Nashville Predators in exchange for future considerations. Friedman has appeared in five NHL games this season and recorded no scoring, 10 penalty minutes, and a minus-four.

Friedman has spent the majority of this season with the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks. He’s recorded one goal, six points, 15 penalty minutes, and a plus-four through 20 games with the minor Canucks, continuing his service as a low-scoring, physical depth defenseman. That’s exactly what the Canucks were searching for when they acquired him via trade from the Pittsburgh Penguins early into the 2023-24 season. Vancouver sent defenseman Jack Rathbone and winger Karel Plasek back the other way. Friedman has appeared in 28 games with the Canucks since then. He’s only managed one point and an average of 12:34 in ice time in that span, but his 39 hits equates to the fourth-highest hits-per-60 (6.65) of any Canucks defenseman since the start of last season. He ranks behind Noah Juulsen (11.52), rookie defender Elias Pettersson (9.13), and Nikita Zadorov (8.07).

The Philadelphia Flyers originally drafted Friedman in the third round of the 2014 NHL Draft. He made his AHL debut two years later, and has since spent the last nine seasons bouncing between NHL and AHL lineups. His career as a depth forward has taken him through stops in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Vancouver, and now Nashville. In that time, Friedman has totaled 93 NHL games, 13 points, 80 penalty minutes, and  141 hits.

Friedman now seems destined to join a burly group of defenders with the Milwaukee Admirals, Nashville’s minor league affiliate. The squad carries plenty of heft thanks to captain Kevin Gravel, Jack Matier, and Spencer Stastney. The trio have served as the physical compliment behind more nimble blue-liners like Ryan Ufko and Nick Blankenburg. But an injury to Jeremy Lauzon and the departure of Alexandre Carrier have forced Gravel and Blankenburg into the NHL lineup, and dried out Nashville’s previously abundant defense depth. The Predators have erred on the side of physicality rather than finesse in addressing that issue, and now add the burly Friedman to their list of fringe NHL defenders.

Blues Reassign Mackenzie MacEachern

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Feb. 7: As expected, the Blues returned MacEachern to Springfield on Friday, according to a team announcement. He was scratched from last night’s loss to the Panthers, as Joseph was available to play.

Feb. 5: The St. Louis Blues have recalled depth forward Mackenzie MacEachern to the NHL. The Blues have two games remaining before going on a two-week break for the 4-Nations Face-Off. MacEachern will be insurance for bottom-six forward Mathieu Joseph, who missed the Blues’ Wednesday practice due to illness. Defenseman Tyler Tucker also missed the skate with an upper-body injury.

MacEachern has had a productive 2024-25 campaign, even despite missing nearly two months of action between late October and the end of December. He didn’t play routine minutes until the start of January and has been red-hot ever since. MacEachern has 14 points in 12 games since the calendar turned over, and six points in his last five games. Those numbers have helped him climb to 15 points in 17 games this season, good for the third-highest point-per-game scoring on the Springfield Thunderbirds. He’s also recorded 36 penalty minutes and a plus-nine this season.

Those are stout numbers for the career depth forward, and he’ll now get a chance to support the Blues amid more absences. MacEachern is no stranger to the role of injury fill-in. He’s operated as the top forward on St. Louis’ call-up chart since the 2018-19 season and played in 51 NHL games during the 2019-20 season. He’s often filled the role of fourth-line bruiser at the top level and has just 20 points in 123 career NHL games as a result. But his impact is consistent enough to stay in favor of the Blues’ top brass. That trust, and his recent scoring streak, could land MacEachern his NHL season debut before the 4-Nations break, should Joseph need to miss time.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

scroll to top