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Islanders Notes: Shabanov, Barzal, Horvat, Drouin

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Despite drawing interest from several NHL teams, Russian free agent forward Maxim Shabanov chose to sign his one-year, entry-level contract with the New York Islanders because of the opportunities it presents, per Daria Tuboltseva of RG.org.

As Tuboltseva notes, Utah, Philadelphia, Vegas, Boston, and the New York Rangers expressed interest in Shabanov and that the 24-year-old surveyed all options before landing with the Islanders. In part, Shabanov prioritized finding the right fit over securing the biggest payday.  His contract will carry a $975,000 cap hit and maximum bonuses – valued at $3.5MM – per NHL.com’s Kevin Weekes.

“Utah really wanted him. So did Philadelphia, Vegas, Boston, the Rangers. So many teams. Some clubs even lost patience because the decision took a while. We were getting five or six calls a day,” his agent, Alexander Chernykh, told RG.

Despite being listed at just 5’8″ and 157 pounds, Shabanov recorded 23 goals and 67 points in 65 games with the KHL’s HC Traktor this season — the third-highest point total in the league. What he lacks in size, he makes up for with speed and skill. Shabanov will look to carve out a role on the Islanders’ third line but could conceivably work his way up the lineup. Today, coach Patrick Roy also noted the team’s interest in utilizing Shabanov as a flank on the power play, per a team release.

Elsewhere with the Islanders:

  • Roy noted that he envisions forwards Jonathan Drouin and Bo Horvat starting training camp on the same line, pairing Drouin’s playing-making abilities with Horvat’s shoot-first mentality. As Roy stated, “I think they’re both going to connect very well.” Drouin will provide the Islanders with key power-play minutes, which Roy said is one of the reasons GM Mathieu Darche signed the veteran to a two-year, $8MM contract. Drouin has recorded 31 power-play points over the past two seasons and 125 across his 11-year NHL career.
  • Roy also stated that Mathew Barzal is expected to slot back into his natural center position next season. Barzal, 28, began his career exclusively as a center but has spent time on the wing in each of the past two seasons. While he’s just one year removed from an 80-point campaign, he was limited to only 30 games last season due to injury, recording six goals and 20 points. With a career faceoff win rate of just 42.3 percent, Barzal will likely spend the offseason working to improve in that area. Last season, he took 52 faceoffs, winning just 22.

Mammoth Begin Extension Talks With Logan Cooley

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The Utah Mammoth have begun discussing a contract extension with top young center Logan Cooley, per Cole Bagley of KSL Sports. Cooley has one more year remaining on the three-year, $2.85MM entry-level contract he signed in July of 2023. His $950K cap hit makes him the cheapest forward currently signed to Utah’s roster.

Cooley has a true breakout season this year. He took full reigns over Utah’s top-line center role and reached an impressive 25 goals and 40 assists in 75 games. He became just the 13th player since 2000 to reach 25 goals and 65 points in a single season before their 22nd birthday. The last players to reach that mark were Wyatt Johnston (65 points in 2023-24), Tim Stutzle (90 points in 2022-23), and Connor McDavid (106 points in 2017-18).

Cooley has reached a high shelf early into his hockey career. Even his rookie year set franchise headlines, with 20 goals and 44 points last season making him the fourth-highest scoring rookie in Arizona Coyotes club history. He matched the scoring totals of a rookie Anthony Duclair with those marks. That season came on the heels of a stellar freshman year at the University of Minnesota, where Cooley scored 22 goals and 60 points in just 39 games.

Just two years in, and before the age of 22, it’s already clear that the 2022 third-overall pick can stand up to major minutes in Utah. The team has gone as far as keeping Cooley top of mind in their draft day approaches – drafting impactful two-way center Caleb Desnoyers in the top 10 last weekend to compliment Cooley’s downhill offensive drive.

With so much attention around embedding Cooley into the future plans, he’ll likely be the topmost priority for the Mammoth between this summer and next. They boast nearly $11MM in projected cap space this summer, and should have just as much room with Nick Schmaltz, Alexander Kerfoot, and Ian Cole set to come off the books next year. Cooley seems set for a major year this season – and could rack up more-and-more of a payday with a hot performance. His baseline for a new deal will likely be the eight-year, $66.8MM deal that Ottawa signed Stutzle to in 2022. That deal carries an annual average value of $8.35MM. But with the rise in cap ceiling in the last few years, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Cooley settle in closer to $9MM.

Getting Cooley settled to a long-term contract will go a long way towards pulling Utah into their future. They have a strong youth presence beginning to break into the top flight, with Cooley backed by Dylan Guenther, JJ Peterka, Tij Iginla, Daniil But, and Desnoyers. That group, and their company on top of the Mammoth prospect chart, will look to push the club into a new generation following looming separations with many top veterans. Cooley will be the leader of the bunch, and likely push forward as Utah’s top-line center of the future.

Photo courtesy of Rob Gray-Imagn Images.

Islanders Hire David Cunniff, Chad Kolarik To AHL Assistant Coach Roles

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The New York Islanders have rounded out their minor-league coaching staff, hiring David Cunniff and Chad Kolarik as assistant coaches for the Bridgeport Islanders per a team release. The duo will join recently named head coach Rocky Thompson at Bridgeport’s helm.

Both Cunniff and Kolarik have deep roots in minor-league hockey. Cunniff played through parts of three seasons in the AHL and five in the ECHL during the late-1990’s. He gained a reputation for bruising minutes, and racked up 168 penalty minutes in 62 games of the 1997-98 season at his peak. Cunniff retired at the age of 30, in the 2001-02 season, and quickly turned his sights towards a coaching career. He was hired as an assistant coach for the Cleveland Barons in the 2002-03 season, and continued on in the role for the next four seasons. He then moved on to eight seasons with the Worcester Sharks, four seasons with the Iowa Wild, one year with the Hartford Wolf Pack, and two seasons with the Utica Comets.

Cunniff’s journeyman career around AHL benches has taken him to just five postseasons over the last 22 years. He’s a stout defensively-minded coach, who should bring regiment to a Bridgeport lineup that struggled last season.

Cunniff will be complimented by rookie pro coach Kolarik. He has only appeared in one coaching season through his hockey career: an assistant coach role with the USHL’s Waterloo Black Hawks in 2021-22. Prior to then, Kolarik trekked through an international playing career. He began as a seventh-round pick in the 2004 NHL Draft, and turned towards an AHL career in the 2008-09 season. He scored 100 points in 152 games over his first three AHL seasons – enough to earn two NHL games with the 2009-10 Columbus Blue Jackets. He went without any scoring, and would continue through four more seasons as a full-time minor-leaguer, with just four more games – and one assist – in the NHL.

Kolarik opted to move to Sweden’s SHL in the 2013-14 season, kicking off a journey around European hockey. He spent two years in Sweden and one year in both Russia and Switzerland, before kicking off a three-year career in Germany’s DEL that ended with a league title. He finished his playing career with one year in Austria’s top league in the 2019-20 season. Kolarik will offer an offensive eye and rich playing experience

Blues Pushing For Bowen Byram Trade

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The St. Louis Blues are set on continuing their overhaul this season. On the heels of announcing a new logo, trading a top rookie, and waiving a long-term veteran – the Blues are now aggressively pushing to acquire Buffalo Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram, per Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic. Rutherford adds that Byram is still a candidate to be offer-sheeted by one of many teams, but St. Louis would not be among those teams. They would have to trade for Byram, since they don’t have the draft capital to match an offer sheet.

Acquiring the former fourth-overall pick would be St. Louis’  biggest move since they kicked off the wave of offer-sheets by acquiring Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg last summer. Byram spent the 2024-25 season closely tied to star Sabres defender Rasmus Dahlin. With his help, Byram was able to reach a career-high 38 points in 82 games – while averaging a career-high 22:42 in ice time each game.

The role in Buffalo was the biggest of Byram’s career, and a hardy step up from the 21 minutes a night he averaged with the Colorado Avalanche in the 2022-23 season. He recorded 24 points in 42 games that year, then followed it up with 29 points in 73 games split between Colorado and Buffalo last season.

Byram has managed an impressive 246 NHL games before the age of 25. He’s managed multiple seasons in top-line roles, on the back of high acclaim in his draft year. And yet, the instinctive offensive-defenseman has yet to manage a season with more than 40 points. He was a glowing defense partner for Dahlin — with the two managing a plus-15 goal differential in their minutes together — but struggled significantly away from the star padding — with a minus-22 goal-differential without Dahlin.

Those marks could spell reason for pessimism around the young defender. But of the many teams interested in striking a deal with Buffalo, the Blues may be the ones with the best role available for Byram. They recently lost their top left-defender in Torey Krug, who missed the entirety of last season with an ankle injury. Broberg admirably filled the top role in Krug’s absence, but only managed 29 points in 68 games on the full season. A move to St. Louis would push Byram into a direct competition with Broberg for top-pair minutes. Byram’s offensive instinct would be what wins him ice time in that battle – though losing out would mean a second-line role next to longtime pro Colton Parayko, while Justin Faulk mans the top role.

The need to lean into more offense could be the spark Byram needs, but landing the trade could be a lofty task for the Blues. They currently hold $625,150 in projected cap space – a number that will rise to just over $7MM when Krug goes on long-term injured reserve. Byram earned a $3.85MM cap hit on his last contract, and could be due double that mark after a year on Dahlin’s hip. That could take St. Louis right up to the salary cap mark, unless they can shed money in a move.

Top-end winger Jordan Kyrou has been rumored to be garnering interest from around the league, and would certainly make sense as the buy-up that Buffalo is looking for in a Byram trade. But Kyrou, 27, has reached the 70 point mark in three of the last four seasons – a streak only interrupted by his 67-point campaign last year. Should he be too rich of an asset to move, the Blues could also bank in on their wealth of high-upside prospects on the wing. They already dealt Zachary Bolduc away for a defense upgrade, and could find a similar move revolving around Jake Neighbours or Dalibor Dvorsky, packaged with additional capital.

Just over a week after claiming that the roster was “set”, Blues general manager has explored multiple ways to shake it up even further. Acquiring Byram would be another big-fish addition to a pond that’s been stocked up over the last two summers. The Blues earned a Wild Card bid last season on a regulation-wins tiebreaker. They scored the most goals of any Western Conference team in the Wild Card race, and could get an even bigger boost should Byram continue his growth through another move.

Photo courtesy of Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports.

Kraken Sign Jake O’Brien To Entry-Level Contract

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2:45 p.m.: Seattle has confirmed the deal, although financial terms were not disclosed.

12:57 p.m.: The Kraken had 2025 No. 8 overall pick Jake O’Brien sign his entry-level contract during today’s development camp scrimmage, Kate Shefte of the Seattle Times reports.

O’Brien, 18, is the latest high-profile name to join a Seattle club that’s now rather deep down the middle organizationally. They’ve had four top-10 picks since their inception in 2021 and have used all of them on centers, previously selecting Matty Beniers, Shane Wright, and Berkly Catton.

Seattle picked the 6’2″ playmaking pivot right around where most expected him to go. For a 2025 draft tabbed as a weaker one, O’Brien carries a strong statistical profile for someone picked that late in the top 10. He was the OHL’s Rookie of the Year in 2023-24 and followed that up with a 32-goal, 98-point season for his Brantford Bulldogs in 66 games.

His point production was likely inflated somewhat – there were two 100-point scorers on the team ahead of him, and there are some concerns about his defensive acumen. Nonetheless, he’ll have an NHL-ready frame in a couple of years’ time once he adds some weight and is one of – if not the best – pure passers in this year’s class, multiple outlets say.

O’Brien may get a long look in training camp, but isn’t necessarily expected to compete for a roster spot. In the likely scenario that he returns to Brantford, his contract will slide to the 2026-27 season.

Hurricanes Sign Nikolaj Ehlers To Six-Year Deal

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The Hurricanes are signing top free agent Nikolaj Ehlers, ESPN’s Kevin Weekes and Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman report. The team has announced the contract, which comes in at six years and $51MM for an $8.5MM cap hit.

Ehlers, No. 2 on our board of top UFAs this summer, had been linked to Carolina since the outset of free agency. Although it became clear he wouldn’t sign on July 1, instead waiting things out after most of the top names decided not to test the market, the Hurricanes were an implied frontrunner while the Capitals and Lightning had also spoken to his camp. Tampa was no longer in the conversation as of Thursday morning, but it appears the Caps, as well as the Mammoth, were in talks with Ehlers’ camp until his decision to choose Carolina in the last hour, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports.

The 29-year-old Dane will capitalize on one of the better seasons of his NHL career in 2024-25 and make the jump to Carolina from Winnipeg. The Jets made him the No. 9 overall pick in the 2014 draft, and for the most part, he’s lived up to that billing. He scored 225 goals and 520 points in 674 games in 10 years in a Jets uniform, leaving the club as its fifth-leading goal-scorer in franchise history.

While Ehlers isn’t the answer to the No. 2 center question that’s plagued Carolina for the past few seasons, he’s that elusive additional top-six winger the club has chased with expensive in-season rentals over the past couple of years, bringing names like Jake Guentzel and Mikko Rantanen in for brief stops in Raleigh. Ehlers scored 24 goals and 63 points in 69 games last season – a 29-goal, 75-point pace had he played in all 82 games. That would have made him one of two 70-point scorers on the Canes last season, along with Sebastian Aho.

It remains to be seen whether Carolina will pair the play-driving winger with Aho on a first line or have Ehlers anchor his own line. He’s hoping it’s the former after years of having his even-strength ice time oddly limited in Winnipeg. Despite averaging north of 60 points per 82 games over his career, Ehlers has only averaged more than 17 minutes per game twice and averaged just 15:48 last year, making him one of the most efficient scorers in the league on a per-minute basis.

The signing caps off what’s been a week of big spending in Raleigh. They rewarded rising sophomore Logan Stankoven with an eight-year, $48MM extension on Tuesday before acquiring defenseman K’Andre Miller from the Rangers in a sign-and-trade, taking him on with an eight-year, $60MM commitment – the largest contract signed since the market opened (Mitch Marner’s eight-year, $96MM contract was registered on June 30).

While not the bona fide No. 1 winger Carolina’s been searching for, he is a legitimate top-line threat that adds another layer of depth to one of the league’s more balanced offensive attacks. He fits the Hurricanes’ model of being one of the league’s strongest possession teams. Not once has Ehlers ever posted a shot share or expected goals share below 50% at even strength in his career, and he had a remarkably strong 4.9% relative Corsi share over his time in Winnipeg.

Even after registering Ehlers’ contract, the Hurricanes have plenty of flexibility to work with if they want to pursue additional signings or trade acquisitions. They’re still left with $10.64MM in cap space, per PuckPedia, and are equipped with four first-round picks in the next three years to leverage in trade talks as they see if they can acquire another top-six piece.

Image courtesy of James Carey Lauder-Imagn Images.

Panthers, MacKenzie Entwistle Agree To Two-Way Deal

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The Panthers and forward MacKenzie Entwistle have agreed to a two-year, two-way deal to keep him in the Florida organization, the team announced. The contract carries a $775K NHL salary and a $450K AHL salary each season, per PuckPedia.

Entwistle initially joined the Cats on a two-way deal last offseason after being non-tendered by the Blackhawks, who drafted him in the third round in 2017. Florida tendered him a qualifying offer earlier this week, making him a restricted free agent.

The deal amounts to a do-over between the 6’3″ winger and the Panthers. Entwistle, who turns 26 later this month, didn’t see NHL ice at all in 2024-25 and was limited by an injury to just seven games with AHL Charlotte, scoring a goal and an assist. He managed to return later in their run to the Calder Cup Final, scoring two goals and an assist in eight playoff games.

A power forward at his core, Entwistle once looked like he could be a full-time NHLer. He may have more seasons ahead of him with top-level games, but he’s topped out as a fourth-line piece at best. He scored 15 goals, 20 assists, and 35 points with a -55 rating in 193 NHL games over four seasons with Chicago, averaging 11:12 per night.

He’ll be destined for waivers again in the fall and, if he clears again, will look to be more effective and healthy for Charlotte. The two-time defending Stanley Cup champions have filled 41 of 50 contract slots for this season.

Examining The Penguins’ Road Back To Competitiveness

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The Penguins have been identified as the one true seller in the NHL this summer and for good reason. They have an aging core that can no longer carry a team, depth that is underwhelming (to say the least), and have arguably been the easiest team to play against from a physical standpoint.

All of that has led general manager Kyle Dubas to pivot into a rebuild that many have forecasted for quite some time. The Penguins made the playoffs for 16 straight seasons but haven’t qualified since 2021-22 and look destined to finish near the bottom of the standings next season.

This has led many to speculate that Sidney Crosby would look to play elsewhere; however, those claims have been disputed by many outlets. For his part, Crosby has balked at these rumours, going so far as to sign a two-year extension to remain in Pittsburgh through what will likely be some painful seasons.

All of this begs the question: When will the Penguins be a competitive team again?

According to Josh Yohe of The Athletic, Pittsburgh has set its sights on next summer as the time to be aggressive buyers. Currently, 2026 looks like a great year to have cap space, with players like Connor McDavid and Cale Makar slated as of right now to become UFAs.

That list of free agents will likely shrink, but there could still be high-end talent under 30 available, which might help the Penguins move beyond their rebuild. As of now, Pittsburgh has over $52MM of available cap space next summer (according to PuckPedia). While this number will decrease over the year, the point remains that they can choose to be major buyers if they wish.

The more likely scenario for the Penguins is that they spend the summer of 2026 adding to their prospect pool with their eight 2026 draft picks (and any additional picks they gain over the next year) or perhaps using those picks and other assets to acquire NHL players. Dubas has made it clear that he’s targeting young, NHL-ready players, and it’s hard to see that approach changing between now and summer 2026.

Two major wild cards will determine how long it takes the Penguins to become a Stanley Cup contender again. The first is where they fall in the 2026 draft order.

If Pittsburgh performs as poorly as many expect, they could win the draft lottery and get the chance to select Gavin McKenna. NHL conspiracy theorists would surely love to dissect that scenario if it were to happen, given that Pittsburgh has had several generational players come through the city via the draft.

The chances of Pittsburgh pulling that off, of course, are nowhere close to a given. That said, there are plenty of solid alternative options with forwards Ivar Stenberg or Ryan Roobroeck.

Neither of these players would have the immediate impact of a McKenna, but they would help the Penguins keep their rebuild on track. Pittsburgh can’t count on winning a lottery to speed up their rebuild, but if they did, it would accelerate the process.

The second major wild card for the Penguins’ rebuild is what happens this summer with the veterans whose names have come up in trade rumors – forwards Bryan Rust, Rickard Rakell, and defenceman Erik Karlsson. Rust has reportedly been a hot commodity, and if Pittsburgh can trigger a bidding war, he could bring back a return that accelerates the team’s journey back to relevance.

The Penguins have made several short-term signings already this summer, including forward Anthony Mantha, who could play in Pittsburgh’s top six should they move on from a winger like Rust. Pittsburgh also has Rakell available, and if they can negotiate a first-round pick for the 32-year-old winger, it would provide another top-tier lottery ticket to help try and draft a future star in Pittsburgh.

Rakell is a difficult trade to forecast, as he is on a bargain contract and capable of scoring 30+ goals. He could be a key piece for a team looking for a winger but missing out on impact players in free agency.

Finally, with Karlsson, the Penguins have a piece that could be very desirable if his cap hit were to fall under $7MM, and less attractive if it exceeds that. Karlsson has long been a polarizing player, but as we recently saw with defenseman Seth Jones, sometimes a player who is overpaid can be more appealing when their cap hit better aligns with their level of play.

Karlsson is no longer a $10MM player, but he can still be very impactful with less responsibility. He maintains his offensive flair, posting 50+ point seasons in both years with the Penguins, and remains excellent at zone exits and transitional play.

If Pittsburgh is willing to retain a significant portion of his cap hit, they could acquire some solid young pieces that will help push them forward in their rebuild. However, if they retain Karlsson, they might struggle to trade him for anything of value, which won’t benefit them long term.

Just like with any rebuild, the Penguins will need a lot of luck for it to go as planned. Having lottery ball luck next year, as well as succeeding with moves to shed veterans, will speed up their rebuild.

If they don’t, it could lead to a rebuild that lasts half a decade or more. As the Buffalo Sabres and Edmonton Oilers have shown over the past 15 years, top-end draft picks and finishing at the bottom of the standings do not guarantee success, and even when you get lucky with some picks and trades, those players you had high hopes for can fall apart.

The truth is that no one can predict how long the Penguins’ rebuild will take. Still, much of the groundwork for a successful rebuild will be laid over the next 12 months, and the rest will depend on how well the players already in the system develop moving forward.

At this year’s draft, Pittsburgh identified a specific type of player they were seeking and went out of their designated slot for almost the entire draft to acquire players that fit their vision. That strategy went against the consensus and could backfire on Dubas, but it was a brave and gutsy approach, perhaps one of the most unorthodox displays in recent memory.

However, that is what Dubas and the Penguins will need to do if they want to become relevant sooner rather than later – think outside the box, take big chances, and trust that their pro and amateur scouting is accurate about the players they are targeting. 2026 might be the target to turn the corner on the rebuild, but it probably isn’t the year they expect to contend.

Given the time it takes for prospects to adjust to the professional game, a safer bet is for the Penguins to become playoff hopefuls in the 2027-28 season. At that point, it’s hard to say whether Crosby will still be around, but if he is, the Penguins’ young players will have perhaps the best mentor a young NHLer could ever ask for.

Photo by Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Rangers Sign Trey Fix-Wolansky To Two-Way Deal

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The Rangers are signing free agent winger Trey Fix-Wolansky to a two-way contract, sources tell Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers. Fix-Wolansky is listed on the Rangers’ roster on the NHL media site despite the lack of an official announcement. He’ll earn the league minimum of $775K in the NHL, per Vince Z. Mercogliano of USA Today. PuckPedia reports he’ll receive a $450K AHL salary with a $500K guarantee. The team has since confirmed the deal.

Fix-Wolansky, 26, makes the jump to the Rangers organization after spending the last seven years in the Blue Jackets’ system. A seventh-round pick in 2018 from the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings, he’s long been an explosive scorer at the junior and AHL levels but has been held back from being a legitimate NHL threat by his 5’7″, 191-lb frame.

The Edmonton native got into NHL action in three straight seasons with Columbus from 2021-22 to 2023-24 but did not see a recall this season after clearing waivers during training camp. He’s totaled four goals and two assists for six points with a minus-six rating in 26 career appearances at the top level, averaging 10:35 per game.

As such, he projects more as an impact addition for the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack and isn’t necessarily expected to be a legitimate competitor for an NHL roster spot. The three-time AHL All-Star has 259 points in 289 career minor-league games, including 26 goals and 60 points in 65 games with the Cleveland Monsters last year.

Sharks Sign Dmitry Orlov, Claim Nick Leddy

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The Sharks are signing free agent defenseman Dmitry Orlov to a two-year, $13MM contract, sources tell Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic. The team has also claimed defenseman Nick Leddy off waivers from the Blues, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports.

San Jose has been looking to make a big financial splash over the past few days, at least per season, per David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period. While also serving as additions to a thin defense, Orlov’s $6.5MM cap hit and Leddy’s $4MM cap hit put the Sharks over the $70.6MM salary cap floor in 2025-26.

Orlov, who turns 34 later this month, now cashes in on a short-term, high-AAV contract for the second time in three years. The top free agent of a thin 2023 class landed a two-year, $15.5MM commitment from the Hurricanes that time around, but it was clear there wasn’t a good fit for him to return next season with the emergence of top prospect Alexander Nikishin and the sign-and-trade pickup of K’Andre Miller from the Rangers filling up the left side of Carolina’s defense.

It’s a slight pay cut for Orlov after seeing his minutes dip below the 20-minute mark per game with the Canes – he’d cost $7.75MM against the cap for the last two years. He does land trade protection from the Sharks, though, after going without it in Carolina. PuckPedia reports Orlov received a full no-trade clause in 2025-26 and a 15-team no-trade clause in 2026-27 as part of the deal. In terms of the cash breakdown, Orlov will rake in a $5.4MM base salary and a $2MM signing bonus this year and a $4MM salary with a $1.5MM signing bonus next season. That low salary compared to the actual cap hit in the back half of the deal could make him an appealing trade candidate at that time.

The 5’11” lefty immediately becomes San Jose’s top defenseman. While he wasn’t the everyday top-four threat on an exceedingly deep Carolina defense like he was for most of his earlier career with the Capitals, he’s only a couple of years removed from averaging north of 22 minutes per game and will need to prepare to resume that workload with the Sharks. Over his two-year tenure with the Hurricanes, Orlov averaged six goals, 22 assists, 28 points, and a +10 rating per 82 games while logging 18:36 per night.

Orlov was a consistent 30-point threat with good two-way acumen during his peak in Washington. It remains to be seen if his age will prohibit him from reaching that level again with San Jose, but their excess of cap room and need for veteran defensemen, combined with only a two-year term, makes this a low-risk signing for general manager Mike Grier, despite his cap hit likely coming in north of his market value.

As for Leddy, the Blues placed him on waivers yesterday with one year remaining on his contract at a $4MM cap hit. St. Louis was looking to shed salary and open up roster space after adding 2021 first-rounder Logan Mailloux to their blue line in a trade with the Canadiens, so they exposed Leddy to the wire after failing to agree on a trade to send him elsewhere.

San Jose is now nearly $2MM over the cap floor, so they can’t flip Leddy to another club while remaining cap-compliant unless they retain salary. All three of their retention slots were full last year, but with Brent Burns’ previous contract expiring, they have one open now. The same goes for frequently speculated trade candidate Mario Ferraro ($3.25MM cap hit) and other potential trade chips like righty Vincent Desharnais ($2MM).

Along with Orlov, Leddy could step into a top-four role for San Jose on the left side, although he could also flex over to the right if necessary. The 34-year-old missed most of last season due to injury and only managed five points in 31 games when healthy, but averaged over 22 minutes per game for St. Louis the year prior and had 28 points with a +14 rating.

With the pickups and the still-delicate cap math to stay above the floor, there’s a bit of a log jam on San Jose’s defense. They have eight rearguards on one-way deals for next season – Orlov, Leddy, Ferraro, Desharnais, July 1 signing John Klingberg, Timothy Liljegren, and youngsters Henry Thrun and Shakir Mukhamadullin. None of them are waiver-exempt, and that list doesn’t include unsigned RFA Jack Thompson or top prospect Sam Dickinson. The Sharks likely won’t be willing to waive Thrun or Mukhamadullin, so the Sharks might still be in the market to add a high-salaried forward this summer in order to help facilitate a trade to create more opportunities for Dickinson, Mukhamadullin, Thompson, and Thrun.

Images courtesy of James Guillory-Imagn Images (Orlov) and Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images (Leddy).

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