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Sharks Sign Aaron Dell, Joey Keane To PTOs

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The San Jose Sharks are adding to their training camp on day two, signing defender Joey Keane and goaltender Aaron Dell to professional try-out agreements.

This deal gives Dell a chance for yet another reunion with the San Jose Sharks. His first NHL games came in San Jose, after working his way up their minor league depth charts as an undrafted free agent. He made his Sharks debut in 2016, serving as the backup to Martin Jones during his prime starting years. Dell flashed bright spots as a rookie, recording an 11-6-1 record and .931 save percentage. He continued to proudly fill San Jose’s backup role through the 2019-20 season but was never able to work into more than 33 games in one season, leading to a move to New Jersey in 2020.

Dell’s production took a major hit when he left San Jose. He’s played in just 23 games since then, recording a measly two wins and .887 save percentage. Not even a return to San Jose in 2022-23 could save Dell’s slide. Now 35, Dell has become a de facto minor leaguer but could make one more lunge toward the NHL lineup on this PTO, joining a Sharks team with shallow goaltending behind star prospect Yaroslav Askarov.

Keane hasn’t achieved the same NHL success, instead spending the majority of his North American career in the AHL. He recorded 83 points across 144 games, including supporting the 2022 Chicago Wolves to a Calder Cup Championship. That production was enough to earn Keane two spot starts in the Carolina Hurricanes lineup, though he wasn’t able to record a point in either outing. Keane has spent the last two seasons with the KHL’s Moscow Spartak, where he’s scored 35 points in 102 games.

Snapshots: NHL Expansion, Stajan, Nylander, Buchnevich

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The NHL’s owners will be meeting on October 1st to vote on opening another NHL Expansion window, shares Andy Strickland of Bally Sports Midwest. Strickland adds that the leading candidates for expansion are Houston, led by Tilman J. Fertitta, and Atlanta, led by Vernon Krause. NHL.com’s Kevin Weekes seconded the story, sharing that he wouldn’t be surprised to see the NHL grow to between 34 and 36 teams.

Adding the pair of southern cities to the NHL would maintain the balance between conferences, but it could throw off Divisional alignment. Every division currently holds eight teams, but additions in Houston and Atlanta could push the Central and Atlantic Divisions, respectively, up to nine. That could be an incentive for further expansion in the future, assuming the NHL keeps their structure the same.

Other notes from around the league:

  • The Calgary Flames have hired longtime Flame Matt Stajan as a skills consultant. Stajan spent nine years with the Flames from 2009 to 2018 – the final years of his 15-year, 1,003-game career in the NHL. That career kicked off with the Toronto Maple Leafs, who drafted Stajan in the second round of 2002 and elevated him to the NHL two seasons later. He quickly became known for his reliable two-way play down the lineup, even briefly flirting with strong scoring with 55 and 57 points in the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons. Those stood as career-highs, but Stajan’s responsible play carried into Calgary, earning him a consistent third-line role during an era of flux for the Flames. He’ll now bring that hockey IQ to the coaching stage, looking to support Calgary as they once again enter a new era.
  • New Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube has shared that William Nylander will start training camp at center, with Max Domi on his wing, shares David Alter of The Hockey News. Nylander has flirted with a center role throughout his nine-year career, but hasn’t fully absorbed the role over John Tavares. Nylander was impressive at the faceoff dot when he did take draws, recording a 51.4 faceoff percentage in 2017-18, his only year taking more than 400 faceoffs in a season. On his career, Nylander has won 963 of a possible 1,909 faceoffs, good for a 50.4 percentage. Domi will offer helpful support in the event that Nylander struggles in the new role, boasting a 52.5 faceoff percentage over the last two seasons.
  • Pavel Buchnevich will also move from the wing to center, shares Matthew DeFranks of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Buchnevich has been much less successful at the faceoff dot, winning just 37.4 of his 206 faceoffs last season. He’s one of St. Louis’ most prolific scorers, forming a strong trio with Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou. But center depth is a sudden concern for the Blues, with players like Brayden Schenn taking a recent step back and prospects like Nikita Alexandrov failing to emerge. The Blues will look to mitigate that lacking depth by spreading out their star talent to start the year.

Pacific Notes: Lehner, Poolman, Kassian

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The Vegas Golden Knights are exploring all options, including contract termination, after goaltender Robin Lehner failed to attend the contractually mandatory pre-season medical exam ahead of training camp, shares Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli. The exam was necessary to confirm Lehner’s medical ineligibility for next season. Seravalli adds that Vegas has been in contact with the NHL and NHL Players’ Association on how to reasonably handle the manner, considering Lehner hasn’t played in over two years. His last game came on April 20, 2022, with his career ended by a hip injury, though Lehner also faced multiple concussions.

Lehner was three years into a five-year, $25MM contract when he stepped away from the game, with the last season slated for the upcoming 2024-25. He only played in 99 games on the contract – spending a third with the Chicago Blackhawks – but he was accomplished when he played, recording 55 wins and a .913 save percentage. Lehner took home the William M Jennings Trophy twice in his career, the Bill Masterton Trophy in 2019, and ranked in the top six of Vezina Trophy voting every year between 2018 and 2020. The achievements spanned a 12-year, 364-game tenure in the NHL.

Other notes from out West:

  • Vancouver Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin announced that defender Tucker Poolman won’t play this season, per Brendan Batchelor of Sportsnet 650. Poolman hasn’t played since the 2022-23 season, when his career was ended by chronic migraines. He played in three games and scored one assist that year, marking the fifth NHL season Poolman took part in, though he only managed to play in a majority of his team’s games once. That came in the 2019-20 season, when Poolman played in 57 games and scored 16 points with the Winnipeg Jets. He worked his way up to second-pair ice time for parts of that season, but ultimately couldn’t stick in the lineup through repeat injuries. His career ended at 163 games and 17 points – still impressive numbers for a fifth-round pick out of the 2013 NHL Draft.
  • The Edmonton Oilers have hired the recently-retired Zack Kassian as a pro scout, per NHL.com’s Jim Matheson. Kassian spent 12 years in the NHL, seven being served in Edmonton. He was never much of a scorer, but fought his way into a middle-six role as the hardnosed and gritty presence to back Edmonton’s finesse players. He even worked into occasional power-play usage – despite a career-high of just 34 points – thanks to his ability to body opponents out of shooting lanes. Kassian’s career ended with 661 games and 203 points. He’ll now look to translate that experience to the hockey ops side of house, supporting a Oilers scouting room that recently departed with longtime pro scout and assistant general manager Brad Holland.

Stars Notes: Robertson, Oettinger, Benn

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Star Dallas Stars forward Jason Robertson will miss the bulk of training camp after undergoing surgery this summer to remove a cyst from his foot, shares NHL.com’s Bruce LeVine. LeVine adds that Robertson just started skating again, and is still expected to join the team for the start of the regular season.

Robertson has emerged as perhaps the top player on a loaded Dallas roster. He crossed the 40-goal mark in both 2021-22 and 2022-23, capping the latter year off with a career-high 109 points. Those numbers came down to Earth last season, though his 80 points still led the Stars by 13 points. He’s proven just as impactful in the postseason, combining for 48 points in 55 games over the last three playoffs.

At 25, Robertson is still a stride away from his prime years but already sits among the league’s top scorers. His health and ability to contribute will be paramount as Dallas prepares for another run toward the Western Conference Finals.

Other notes out of Texas:

  • General manager Jim Nill shared in his opening day press conference that there have been no talks of an extension with goaltender Jake Oettinger, per Brien Rea of Bally Sports Southwest. Nill added that there are a few goalies on the open market that they’ll use to help price Oettinger, inadvertently mentioning the ongoing holdout between the Boston Bruins and Jeremy Swayman. Oettinger holds the upper hand to Swayman despite the two being the same age, with the former already achieving seasons of 50 and 60 games. He’s held strong in those outings, boasting a career save percentage of .913 through 193 games. Formerly a first-round pick, Oettinger has grabbed full control of Dallas’ starting role. He’ll look to be compensated as such as Dallas approaches a 2025 summer featuring an endless list of key pending-free agents, including Matt Duchene, Wyatt Johnston, and Jamie Benn.
  • Speaking of Benn, Nill also shared that he’ll be adamant about keeping the Stars’ captain when his deal expires. The GM went as far as saying, “As long as I’m GM, [Benn] is going to be a Dallas Star,” as captured by LeVine. Benn’s average ice time has decreased in the wake of Dallas’ emerging stars, but he remains a productive piece of the lineup – posting 21 goals and 60 points this season, and 33 goals and 78 points last season. He’s also played in every Stars’ regular season game dating back to the start of the 2021-22 season. At 35, Benn’s next deal is likely to carry him to retirement. Nill wants to ensure that happens with the only club that Benn has ever played for.

Canucks To Start Camp Without Teddy Blueger, Cole McWard

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The Vancouver Canucks will begin training camp without forward Teddy Blueger and defenseman Cole McWard after both underwent minor, lower-body surgery – general manager Patrik Allvin shared with The Athletic’s Thomas Drance. The two will join forward Dakota Joshua and goaltender Thatcher Demko in working to recover from lower-body injuries before camp ends.

Blueger, 30, will stand as the biggest missing piece, having played 68 games with the Canucks last season. It was his first year in Vancouver and he used it to good effect, tying his career-high of 28 points while making the second-most appearances of any one season. The stout year succeeded a 2022-23 campaign to remember for Blueger. He started the year with the Pittsburgh Penguins, where he spent the first five years of his career, but a Trade Deadline move landed Blueger on the Vegas Golden Knights. He’d proceed to slot into 24 games with Vegas, between the regular and post-seasons, serving a depth role as the team ran to the first Stanley Cup win of their young history. That was Blueger’s first chance to get his name etched on the Cup, having spent the years of  Pittsburgh’s back-to-back Cup wins in the minor leagues.

McWard, 23, is on the other end of his career, just completing his first season after joining Vancouver as an undrafted free agent in 2023. He’s been awarded six NHL games to this point, scoring one goal, though he spent the majority of this season with the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks. McWard managed 17 points in 57 games with the junior Canucks, ranking fourth among the team’s defenders in scoring.

The training camp absence will hinder both – as Blueger looks to fend off competition for his fourth-line role, and McWard looks to claim one of the open spots on Vancouver’s blue-line. The pair’s injuries could give a boost to players like Kiefer Sherwood and Noah Juulsen, or even open more room for Sammy Blais as he tries to vindicate a professional try-out agreement. All three will battle for quaint roles in the lineup, but could end up pivotal pieces as Vancouver eyes another berth into the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Flames Sign Cole Schwindt And Ilya Solovyov

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The Calgary Flames have signed their last two pending RFAs ahead of training camp, agreeing to a one-year, two-way contract with forward Cole Schwindt, and a two-year, hybrid contract with defenseman Ilya Solovyov. Schwindt will carry an $800K cap hit at the NHL level. Solovyov will earn a league-minimum $775K salary at the NHL level, while his deal will be two-way in year one and one-way in year two. Schwindt’s deal was first reported by Pat Steinberg of Sportsnet 960, while Solovyov’s contract was announced by agent Dan Milstein.

Schwindt has spent the last four seasons clawing his way up minor-league depth charts, beginning his career with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch in the shortened 2020-21 season. He scored two points in 10 games in his first year – production that paled in comparison to the 40 points he’d score in 72 games with the Charlotte Checkers in the following year. That hot scoring boosted Schwindt to Charlotte’s top line and ultimately earned him the first three games of his NHL career when the Florida Panthers faced injury. He failed to score in those appearances but flashed enough to be included in the infamous Matthew Tkachuk trade a few months later – joining Jonathan Huberdeau, MacKenzie Weegar, and a draft pick in being moved to the Calgary Flames.

That deal moved Schwindt to the Calgary Wranglers lineup, where he took some time to find his footing, scoring just 32 points in 70 games in 2022-23. He improved on that a bit this year, climbing back to 36 points in 66 games and once again earning NHL ice time – though he again failed to score through four outings.

Schwindt seems set to return to his role of top minor-leaguer next season, looking to continue to improve his scoring. If he does, the 23-year-old winger could be a favorite depth fill-in as Calgary pushes through the 2024-25 campaign with a much younger lineup than last season.

Solovyov has been in a similar spot to Schwindt, fighting up the minor-league lineup, though he’s spent the entirety of his three-year pro career in the Flames organization. He moved to the AHL in 2021-22, recording just eight points in 51 games as a rookie. Solovyov boosted that production to 18 points in 68 games in the following year. That seems to be more in line with his routine scoring, vindicated by his 15 points in 51 games this year, which was enough to earn Solovyov his first 10 NHL games in the middle of the year. He recorded three assists and four penalty minutes in those outings, looking fairly stout on a Flames defense in need of help.

While Schwindt will need to work his way up to the NHL fringe, Solovyov will jump straight into a competition for minutes with peers like Joel Hanley, Kevin Bahl, and Jake Bean. Each member of that trio carries more NHL experience than Solovyov, but his deal featuring a one-way year could be a strong indication of his lineup upside.

Canucks’ Alexander Edler Announces Retirement

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The Vancouver Canucks have announced that they’ll sign defenseman Alexander Edler to a one-day contract on October 11th, allowing him to retire in the city he spent 15 seasons in. Edler is a veteran of 1,030 NHL games, spending all but 105 of those in a Canucks jersey.

Edler holds a case as the draft day steal of 2004, originally going in the third round but since totaling the seventh-most NHL games of anyone in the class. He earned a top-pair role in Vancouver as a rookie in 2007, immediately flashing reliable two-way play and modest scoring. He’d become known for his consistency, emerging as one of Vancouver’s most utilized defenders through the bulk of the  Sedin era and routinely challenging the 35-point mark. Edler’s career year came in the 2011-12 season, when he tallied 11 goals, 38 assists, and 49 points in 82 games – career-highs in all four stats, and the only time that Edler played in a full season. His 409 points in 925 games with Vancouver both rank as all-time highs among Canucks defenders.

Edler continued playing over 20 minutes a night through his final season in Vancouver in 2021. But the addition of superstar Quinn Hughes challenged Edler’s role, leading him to sign with the Los Angeles Kings, where he’d close his career on a pair of one-year contracts. His scoring took a hit in his final years – falling from a per-game average of 0.44 points in Vancouver (409 points in 925 games) to just 0.29 in Los Angeles (30 points in 105 games). He was one of only a few 2004 draft picks still playing in the NHL last season, joining Alex Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin, Blake Wheeler, and Alex Goligoski.

The Canucks will honor their longtime top-defender with a pre-game ceremony during their October 11th matchup against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Snapshots: CHL/NTDP, Brind’Amour, Bruins

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The Canadian Hockey League’s top draft-eligible players will take on the U.S. National Development Team’s U-18 tier for the first time this November, the junior league announced Tuesday (via TSN). The pair of contests, which will take place in London and Oshawa, Ontario, on Nov. 26 and Nov. 27, will be the first installment in an annual “CHL-USA Prospects Challenge.”

It’ll run for at least three years, with sites rotating between OHL, QMJHL, and WHL hosts. The CHL and NTDP will have the opportunity to re-up the initial deal securing the event in 2027.

It will serve the purpose of an early-season showcase for draft-eligible talent, so don’t expect to see CHL superstars coming back for their post-draft seasons or beyond. The NHL’s Central Scouting Bureau will select most of the CHL’s roster for the series, Darren Dreger of TSN reports.

Thus, this year’s event will be headlined by 2025 draft-eligible talent. The rosters will likely include forwards Porter Martone, Michael Misa, and Roger McQueen as the CHL’s most notable names, and center William Moore and defensemen Logan Hensler and Charlie Trethewey should highlight the U.S. squad.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Forward Skyler Brind’Amour is reportedly planning to terminate his AHL contract with the Charlotte Checkers and sign a deal with the Carolina Hurricanes. The move – which is not yet official – was first reported by AHL.com’s Tony Androckitis and seconded by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. Brind’Amour played in his rookie AHL season with the Checkers last year, netting eight points in 54 games. He took the step to the pros after four years with Quinnipiac University, where he supported the school’s 2023 National Championship win. He ended his collegiate career with 76 points in 145 games. He’ll look to rediscover that production in the Hurricanes organization, likely set on a role with the Chicago Wolves – who Carolina announced an affiliation agreement with in May.
  • The Boston Bruins have scheduled a press conference for 12 P.M ET tomorrow, where both head coach Jim Montgomery and general manager Don Sweeney will speak with media. They’ll most likely be speaking on the team’s first day of training camp, though Ty Anderson of Boston radio outlet 98.5 The Sports Hub reports that contract talks are picking up with RFA goaltender Jeremy Swayman. Swayman was left off of Boston’s initial training camp roster as he continues a contract standoff. He’ll be in for a major role when he does sign, with Boston dealing Vezina Trophy winner Linus Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators earlier this summer.

Oilers Mutually Part Ways With Assistant GM Brad Holland

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The Edmonton Oilers won’t bring assistant general manager Brad Holland into the 2024-25 season, announcing the two sides have mutually parted ways. Holland was promoted to assistant GM in 2022, joining Keith Gretzky and Bill Scott in supporting Oilers GM Ken Holland, Brad’s father. Edmonton chose not to extend Ken’s contract at the end of the season, ending his five-year tenure as the team’s GM and President of Hockey Operations. They’ve since replaced him with longtime Chicago Blackhawks’ GM Stan Bowman, making his return to the NHL.

Brad started his career in hockey in 2006, joining NHL.com as a writer and video editor while attending Fordham University of Law. He left that role in 2013, briefly practicing law before Toronto Maple Leafs’ president Branden Shanahan convinced him to join the Leafs as a team manager in 2015. Holland signed a two-year deal, using the time to build up a strong understanding of hockey analytics and scouting. He’d go on to work with NHL Central Scouting registry, before ultimately reuniting with his father in 2019, when he joined Edmonton as a pro scout. He continued to support Edmonton’s pro and amateur scouting throughout this season, becoming known for his in-depth, analytical approach to scouting, earning him credit as Edmonton used trades to build up their forward depth and prospect pool.

Holland will now join his father in looking for a new role. Brad offers eight years of experience in front offices, where his unique approach to scouting and team-building left an impact. He’s likely to find a new home soon – and could even be enticed to join Edmonton’s Western Conference foe, the Dallas Stars, where his uncle Dennis serves as an amateur scout.

Five Key Stories: 9/9/24 – 9/15/24

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With training camps on the horizon, PTO agreements were the theme of the week with many veterans taking one to get a landing spot for training camp.  In the meantime, there was some other notable news across the NHL which is recapped in our key stories.

Columbus Adds A Veteran: On Saturday, Blue Jackets GM Don Waddell indicated that he would be looking to add a forward or two heading into training camp.  He wasted little time getting one of them as the team signed veteran winger James van Riemsdyk to a one-year, $900K contract.  The 35-year-old is coming off a decent season in Boston, one that saw him record 11 goals and 27 assists in 71 games despite averaging just 13:30 per night, his lowest ATOI since his rookie campaign in 2009-10.  Columbus is certainly on the lookout for some scoring help following the trade of Patrik Laine and the tragic death of Johnny Gaudreau while forward Justin Danforth is also now injured so it wouldn’t be surprising to see them do something else fairly quickly.

Surgery For Kane: For months now, it has been expected that Oilers winger Evander Kane was going to miss time with the injury that sidelined him late in the playoffs.  We now know the nature of the injury as it was revealed that the veteran will undergo sports hernia surgery within the next week.  Kane played through the injury for a good chunk of the regular season and most of the playoffs but was only able to dress in two games in the Stanley Cup Final.  There’s no word on exactly how long the procedure will keep Kane out for but assuming it’s for more than 10 games and 24 days, Edmonton will be able to place him on LTIR if they need to in order to keep cap-compliant.

Four For Larsson: Veteran defenseman Adam Larsson was picked by Seattle in expansion despite being a pending unrestricted free agent although he was quickly signed to a four-year deal.  The 31-year-old has been a solid defender in his first three seasons with them while even managing a career year offensively in 2022-23.  He was rewarded for his efforts earlier in the week as the Kraken signed him to a four-year, $21MM contract extension which begins in the 2025-26 season.  The deal represents a $1.1MM per season raise from his current deal and carries full trade protection for the first two years before it drops to a 15-team no-trade clause.

Shoulder Injury For Hughes: With this being a contract year for Devils defenseman Luke Hughes, it’s safe to say he was hoping to get off to a strong start to his season.  That won’t be the case now as the team announced that he suffered a left shoulder injury while training, one that will keep him out for six to eight weeks.  That means the 21-year-old will miss all of training camp, the preseason, and the start of the regular season.  Hughes had a promising rookie year, recording 47 points in 82 games last season which helped make him a finalist for the Calder Trophy.  He’ll now have to wait a little longer to try to build off that performance.

Toronto Signs Three: The Maple Leafs were busy finalizing their roster heading into training camp.  First, they took care of their last remaining restricted free agent, re-signing Nicholas Robertson to a one-year, $875K contract.  The 23-year-old had 27 points in 56 games last season but had made it known his preference was to get a change of scenery.  Now, he’ll look to make an impression under new head coach Craig Berube and establish himself higher in the lineup.

Meanwhile, they added two new players to the team as well.  Veteran Max Pacioretty signed a PTO agreement although his agent, Octagon’s Allan Walsh, quickly noted that they expect to have a contract in place by the start of the regular season.  The 35-year-old has battled injuries the last three seasons but still managed to record 23 points in 47 games with Washington in 2023-24.  Lastly, the team finally inked defenseman Jani Hakanpaa, who they had agreed to terms with on the opening day of free agency.  However, the terms are slightly different.  Instead of a two-year, $3MM agreement, he received a one-year, $1.47MM contract with an eight-team no-trade clause.  Hakanpaa was a physical presence on the back end in Dallas last season but there are concerns over his knee after missing the end of the season and the playoffs due to injury.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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