Before he ultimately re-signed with Edmonton, the Jets took a run at signing center Adam Henrique on the opening day of free agency, notes Postmedia’s Scott Billeck. Winnipeg was eyeing the 34-year-old as a replacement for Sean Monahan, who turned down an offer from them to ink a five-year deal with Columbus. Henrique had a solid showing last season, notching 51 points in 82 games between Anaheim and Edmonton and could have slotted in behind Mark Scheifele to anchor the second line but opted to return to play a lesser role with the Oilers.
Elsewhere around the hockey world:
- After inking his entry-level deal on Thursday, Red Wings prospect Michael Brandsegg-Nygard told Nitten’s Wegard Bakkehaug that no decision has been made regarding where he’ll play next season. The 18-year-old acknowledged that breaking camp with Detroit isn’t realistic but he is eligible to play with AHL Grand Rapids or play with SHL Skelleftea. Brandsegg-Nygard suggested his preference might be to play in Sweden and that Detroit will give him a chance to have a say in where he winds up.
- Former NHL winger Joona Luoto is expected to sign with HV71 of the SHL, reports Johan Svensson and Jacob Johannesson of Sport Expressen. The 26-year-old has 23 career NHL contests under his belt between Winnipeg and Columbus but became a Group Six free agent in 2023 and elected to sign a contract in Switzerland over another two-way deal in North America. Luoto had 18 goals and nine assists in 47 games with SC Bern last season.
- Generally speaking, NHL prospects typically prefer to play at the top level possible overseas. However, that’s not the case for Panthers youngster Linus Eriksson who told Hockey Sverige’s Uffe Bodin that he turned down interest from multiple SHL teams to remain with Djurgarden in the second-tier Allsvenskan. The 18-year-old was the 58th-overall pick by Florida after he put up 11 points in 29 games at that level last season. Eriksson was much more productive at the junior level, collecting 21 points in 25 games with them and added seven points in seven games for Sweden at the World Under-18s.