With training camps a little more than a month away, activity around the hockey world has slowed down considerably in recent weeks. Nevertheless, there was some news of note over the past seven days which is recapped in our key stories.
Helenius To Play In North America: On draft day, Konsta Helenius slipped to the Sabres at 14th overall despite being ranked as a top-ten prospect by several publications. Often, a European player picked in the middle of the first round will stay overseas for a couple of years but that’s not the case for Helenius as his club team in Tappara revealed that the youngster is expected to play in North America this coming season. Since he wasn’t drafted out of the CHL, Helenius is eligible to play with AHL Rochester in 2024-25 but after an impressive season in the Finnish Liiga that saw him record 36 points in 51 games, it’s possible that he makes a case to spend at least a few games in Buffalo as well.
Klefbom Confirms Retirement: Any hope of a late-career comeback for Oscar Klefbom has come to an end as the blueliner confirmed that he has retired. The 31-year-old was a key part of Edmonton’s back end for most of his career, averaging more than 21 minutes a night over his last six seasons. However, a shoulder injury that he played through eventually proved to be too much as he last played in the 2019-20 campaign, spending the final three years of his contract on LTIR before becoming a free agent last summer. Klefbom has indicated that he’d like to stay involved in some capacity but it remains to be seen if that will be with an NHL team or in his native Sweden.
Avs Add Another Blueliner: Colorado has been active in adding depth defenders this summer, bringing in Erik Brannstrom and Calvin de Haan early in free agency. They added another rearguard this past week, signing Oliver Kylington to a one-year, $1.05MM deal. The 27-year-old returned to Calgary in January after missing a year and a half for mental health reasons. While his numbers in the second half weren’t overly impressive (eight points in 33 games), his last full season in 2021-22 was a breakout showing for Kylington when he put up 31 points in 73 appearances while logging over 18 minutes a night. If he can come even close to those numbers with the Avalanche, they’ll get strong value on this contract.
Coaching Changes In Columbus: In an offseason that has seen the Blue Jackets take their time with off-ice moves, they rounded out their coaching staff under new bench boss Dean Evason. The team parted ways with assistant coach Mark Recchi and development coach Derek Dorsett (who could eventually return in another capacity); assistant Josef Boumedienne had previously been let go as well. Taking their place on the coaching staff will be new assistant coaches Scott Ford and Mike Haviland. This will be Ford’s first coaching job at the AHL level after spending the last eight seasons with AHL Milwaukee. Haviland, meanwhile, has four years of NHL experience as an assistant with Chicago and spent the last two years as an associate coach with their AHL affiliate in Cleveland.
Sillinger Nearing A Contract: Still with the Blue Jackets, they only have one remaining restricted free agent to re-sign, forward Cole Sillinger. It appears he won’t be unsigned for much longer as the two sides are believed to be close to getting an agreement on a new deal in place. It’s expected that the contract, when finalized, will be for two years. The 21-year-old was the 12th overall pick by Columbus in 2021 and turned pro right after, spending the bulk of his entry-level deal at the NHL level where he has 74 points in 220 games. With the limited production, a long-term agreement doesn’t make sense for either side so it appears he’ll get a couple of years to try to boost his value before gaining arbitration eligibility next time out.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.