Defenseman Ryan Murray has had a long history when it comes to chronic back injuries. He played just 13 games in 2022-23 and didn’t play anywhere this past season. However, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that Murray had surgery which he believes has solved his chronic back troubles and he will be looking to land a PTO with an NHL team this summer. The 29-year-old was the second-overall pick back in 2012 and has played in 445 career contests at the top level so far, recording 15 goals, 116 assists, and 716 blocked shots. PTO agreements often take longer to materialize so Murray will likely have to wait a while to see what opportunities might become available closer to training camp in September.
More from around the hockey world:
- Although the expectation was that the Canucks would go with Arturs Silovs as Thatcher Demko’s backup next season, that might no longer be the case. Thomas Drance and Rick Dhaliwal of The Athletic report (subscription link) that Vancouver will be shopping for a veteran netminder on the open market and it appears that they’re willing to spend around $1.5MM for that player. Casey DeSmith served as the second-string option this past season but does not appear to be an option at this time. Silovs still has one year of waiver exemption remaining so there’s a case to be made that he’d be better served playing as the starter in the minors over seeing second-string duty with Vancouver.
- Kraken free agent winger Marian Studenic has inked a two-year deal with SHL Farjestad, per a team release. The 25-year-old spent most of the year with AHL Coachella Valley, recording 15 goals and 29 assists in 64 games, earning him a two-game recall to Seattle. Studenic also added 11 points in 18 playoff contests for the Firebirds. However, rather than stick around in the minors, he’s opting to try his hand overseas.
- Pending UFA winger Ryan Lomberg appears to have priced himself past what the Panthers can afford, relays David Dwork of The Hockey News (Twitter link). The 29-year-old put up 12 goals and 20 points in 2022-23 but was limited to just five goals and two assists in 75 games this past season although he added a career-high 175 hits. Lomberg played on an $800K AAV for the last two years and Florida will need to have several players at that price point again next season. If Lomberg believes he can beat that on the open market – a reasonable assumption – then he’ll have to go elsewhere to get it.