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Archives for July 2025

Blues Sign Nick Bjugstad To Two-Year Deal

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The Blues announced they’ve signed center Nick Bjugstad to a two-year, $3.5MM contract worth $1.75MM per season.

Scouring the free agent market for a third-line center, the Blues have found their man in Bjugstad. The former first-round pick of the 2010 NHL Draft is coming off a two-year stint with the Arizona Coyotes, and subsequently the Utah Mammoth, where he recorded 30 goals and 64 points in 142 games, averaging 15:04 of ice time per game and managing a 48.8% success rate in the faceoff dot.

Still, it was truly a tale of two years for the 13-year veteran. Bjugstad had the second-highest scoring output of his career during the 2023-24 campaign, only to see it fall to his fourth-worst last season. Furthermore, his 47.4% faceoff rate was the lowest of his career since his brief 13-game stretch with the Pittsburgh Penguins during the 2019-20 season.

His scoring depression has certainly led to the slight drop in salary compared to his last contract. However, Bjugstad displayed strong possession metrics in his last year in Salt Lake City, maintaining a 51.5% CorsiFor% at even strength, and quality defensive metrics with a 90.8% on-ice save percentage at even strength.

Throughout the rest of the afternoon, the Blues will be limited by their financial flexibility. Unless another move is made, Bjugstad will likely play between Jake Neighbours and Mathieu Joseph on the team’s third line.

PHR’s Brennan McClain contributed significantly to this article. 

Islanders Sign David Rittich, Ethan Bear

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The Islanders are inking free agent goaltender David Rittich to a deal, ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reports. The team announced it’s a one-year deal, although financial terms weren’t disclosed. Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News reports it’s worth around $1MM. They’ve also signed defenseman Ethan Bear to a two-way deal with a $425K guarantee, per PuckPedia.

Rittich will join the Islanders as an insurance bet for veteran goalie Semyon Varlamov, who missed the bulk of the 2024-25 season due to a long-term, knee injury. Varlamov underwent surgery to address the issue in December, and has been rehabbing with a return in mind ever since. He wasn’t able to return in time for the end of the season, but has affirmed that he’ll be ready for training camp at the end of the summer.

Should Varlamov need additional time, the Islanders will be able to lean on Rittich to back up the heavy workload of Ilya Sorokin. Rittich spent the last two seasons backing up Cam Talbot and Darcy Kuemper with the Los Angeles Kings. He was tasked with stepping into 24 games of the 2023-24 season, then climbed to 34 games last year as Kuemper battled through injury. He found an interesting balance over two seasons in L.A., managing a stout .921 save percentage in his first year but a dismal .886 save percentage this season. His record fell positive in both seasons, ultimately totaling at 29-20-5 in 58 games.

The backup role in Los Angeles brought Rittich through his ninth season, and 230th game, in the NHL. He has appeared in stretches with the Calgary Flames, Winnipeg Jets, Nashville Predators, and Toronto Maple Leafs in that span. In total, Rittich has amassed a .904 save percentage and 204-108-71 record. He’ll be a cheap third-string option that should help New York mitigate their trend of injury-riddled seasons.

The Islanders will also add Bear as an important piece of depth. The 28-year-old defenseman spent the entirety of the 2024-25 season with the AHL’s Hershey Bears, where he stood out as one of the best defenders across the minor leagues. He finished the season with 10 goals, 46 points, 30 penalty minutes, and a plus-33 through 62 games. That was enough to finish eighth among AHL defenders in points, and second in plus-minus. Bear struggled to find a hardy role through tenures with the Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes, Vancouver Canucks, or Washington Capitals. With that said, he’s still managed a stout 67 points, 112 penalty minutes, and minus-14 through 275 appearances in the NHL. If he can find a strong groove, he could surge back to the NHL on an Islanders blue-line in need of right-side support.

Kraken Sign Ryan Lindgren To Four-Year Deal

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The Kraken have signed defenseman Ryan Lindgren to a four-year contract worth $4.5MM per season, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.

This will mark Lindgren’s second move in just four months. He was previously traded to the Colorado Avalanche at the Trade Deadline alongside Jimmy Vesey, in a deal that landed the New York Rangers forward Juuso Parssinen, defenseman Calvin de Haan, and conditional second and fourth round draft picks. After starting the year with 19 points in 54 games with the Rangers, Lindgren finished the year with three points, a minus-one, and four penalty minutes in 18 games with the Avalanche. He also chipped in three assists and a plus-five to seven postseason games.

It was the postseason appearances that earned Lindgren recognition from around the league. He ranked second on the team in blocked shots (12) and looked like a hardy defensive addition behind Colorado’s all-out offense. That standing wasn’t enough to push the Avalanche beyond the first round, but it seemingly was enough to keep Lindgren top of mind for teams in need of hardy, depth defenders.

Lindgren has been in the league for the last seven seasons, all the while holding down a strong role on the Rangers’ second pairing. He was an active participant in New York’s defensive zone, even racking up as much as 141 blocked shots and 129 hits in a single year during the 2021-22 campaign. He continued to rival the century tally in both stats through the last three seasons, and even managed 128 blocks and 80 hits alongside a career-high 22 points between New York and Colorado this season.

Lindgren will step into Seattle seemingly looking to rival Josh Mahura and Ryker Evans for ice time as the team’s third-pair left-defender. He could also be a candidate to play on his off-hand side opposite of Evans – in an effort to shore up Seattle’s deprived right-side. With a play style that leans heavily against getting involved in the defensive end, Lindgren shouldn’t be much effected by the ask to play on the right-side – though additional moves could make his role for the 2025-26 campaign a bit more defined.

Maple Leafs Sign Michael Pezzetta To Two-Year Deal

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The Maple Leafs are signing winger Michael Pezzetta to a two-year contract, TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports. It’s a two-year deal with a cap hit of $787,500, according to Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic.

Strictly playing in a fourth-line role with the Montreal Canadiens, Pezzetta finishes his tenure in Quebec with 15 goals and 38 points in 200 games, averaging 8:03 of ice time per game. Without producing much in the way of offense, Pezzetta was typically used in a defensive role when on the Canadiens roster, starting 54.8% of his shifts in the defensive zone, and maintaining a 90.1% on-ice save percentage at even strength.

Unfortunately, after spending much of the last season as a healthy scratch, there was no real point for Pezzetta to remain in Montreal. In Toronto, he’ll play a similar role, and could again be a healthy scratch on most nights. Still, after trading Mitch Marner to the Vegas Golden Knights, the Maple Leafs have found themselves in a unique monetary position to add a host of depth players this offseason.

Over the past several years, due to the high-priced contracts for Auston Matthews, William Nylander, John Tavares, and Marner, Toronto has typically had challenges procuring the necessary depth to last throughout the regular season. Starting with Pezzetta, the team aims to strengthen its bottom six so it does not remain a liability throughout the regular season and playoffs.

PHR’s Brennan McClain contributed significantly to this article. 

Bruins Sign Tanner Jeannot, Jordan Harris

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The Bruins have signed winger Tanner Jeannot to a five-year deal worth $3.4MM per season, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. Friedman has also announced that the Bruins are nearing a contract with defenseman Jordan Harris, who played his collegiate hockey at Northeastern University. Anthony Di Marco of the Daily Faceoff reports that it’ll be a one-year, $825K agreement for Harris.

In one of the most surprising additions of the day, the Bruins have inked a long-term deal with a power forward who has disappointed greatly over the past three years. Still, there was a time when Jeannot was regarded as one of the better up-and-coming power forwards in the league. During the 2021-22 campaign, Jeannot scored 24 goals and 41 points in 81 games with the Nashville Predators, adding 318 hits.

Despite getting off to a slow start the following season, Jeannot commanded quite a haul at the following deadline. The Predators traded Jeannot to the Tampa Bay Lightning for a package including defenseman Cal Foote and five draft picks. Unfortunately, the trade immediately became a net loss for the Lightning, and Jeannot hasn’t been the same player since his breakout season.

Over the past three years, Jeannot has scored at a dismal pace compared to the 2021-22 campaign, scoring 20 goals and 45 points in 198 games between the Predators, Lightning, and Los Angeles Kings. Still, he’s maintained his physicality by throwing 712 hits in that time frame, but his shooting percentage has cratered to 9.0%.

He’s regarded as a quality defensive forward, but shouldn’t be considered for a higher role than any team’s third line, making this commitment by Boston all the more peculiar. At any rate, they’ve added considerable physicality to their bottom-six to a team whose entire brand is built around physical hockey.

Meanwhile, Harris joins the third organization of his career after not receiving a qualifying offer from the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Haverhill, MA native returns home after spending the last four years with the Montreal Canadiens and Blue Jackets.

Still, he’s coming to Boston on the heels of a down season. In a depth role, Harris scored one goal and five points for Columbus in 33 games last season, averaging 11:23 of ice time per game. There is some reason for optimism, however, as Harris’s most recent season with the Canadiens saw him produce one goal and 14 points in 56 contests, when he averaged more than 17 minutes of ice time.

PHR’s Brennan McClain contributed significantly to this article. 

Devils Sign Connor Brown

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After citing Sportsnet’s Gene Principe, Elliotte Friedman reports that the New Jersey Devils are finalizing a four-year, $12MM contract with free agent forward Connor Brown. The Devils later announced the deal, which PuckPedia reports carries a no-move clause through 2026-27 and a 10-team no-trade list in 2027-28 and 2028-29.

Brown will join the Devils after spending the last two seasons with the Edmonton Oilers. He joined the club on a one-year, league-minimum contract ahead of the 2023-24 season — seemingly intent on filling the role of bruiser rotated into Edmonton’s top-six. But his first year was marred by slow play, ending in Brown netting just 12 points, four penalty minutes, and a minus-eight through 71 games. He averaged under 13 minutes of ice time a game in that span. But despite the quiet year, Edmonton saw enough to re-sign Brown to a one-year, $1MM contract last summer, folding him back into a team that added multiple other supporting pieces. In a more assured role, Brown climbed back to the productivity that headlined his earlier career, ultimately finishing the season with 13 goals and 30 points in 82 games. He added an additional nine points in 20 playoff games.

While his surge back to the scoresheet is encouraging, Brown still fell well below his previous career-highs this year. He was once a hot depth scorer through four years with the Toronto Maple Leafs, and three years with the Ottawa Senators. Brown scored 20 goals and 36 points in his rookie season with Toronto in 2016-17. He continued to rival the 30-point mark through two additional full seasons in Toronto, before moving to Ottawa and discovering another layer to his scoring. His first season with the Senators featured 16 goals and 43 points in 71 games — a mark Brown emphasized with 21 goals and 35 points in 56 games of the shortened 2020-21 season. He capped off his time in Ottawa with 39 points in 64 games, seemingly setting up a strong ramp to his time in Edmonton.

Brown may not have discovered the same scoring with the Oilers, but he brings to New Jersey a veteran presence and hefty style that should slot into the team’s bottom-six. He’ll be an imposing role player who could offer 15 or 20-goal upside with the right swing. His role should come alongside Dawson Mercer at the team’s third-line center role, though Brown will have to earn that spot over Nolan Foote, Nathan Legare, and Juho Lammikko.

Rangers To Sign Vladislav Gavrikov To Seven-Year Contract

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As expected, the New York Rangers are finalizing a contract for unrestricted free agent defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun was the first to announce the news. Shortly thereafter, LeBrun shared that it’ll be a seven-year, $49MM agreement for Gavrikov in the Big Apple.

PuckPedia was quick to report the financial breakdown of Gavrikov’s new deal with the Rangers:

  • Year 1: $1MM salary, $8MM signing bonus
  • Year 2: $1MM salary, $8MM signing bonus
  • Year 3: $1MM salary, $6.65MM signing bonus
  • Year 4: $1MM salary, $5.55MM signing bonus
  • Year 5: $1MM salary, $5MM signing bonus
  • Year 6: $3.4MM salary, $2MM signing bonus
  • Year 7: $5.4MM salary

Additionally, PuckPedia shared that Gavrikov will have a full no-movement clause in the first five years of the deal, before transitioning to a 20-team modified no-trade clause in the sixth year, and a 15-team modified no-trade clause in the seventh season.

Due to the contract being paid out mostly in signing bonuses, it explains why Gavrikov signed for nearly $11MM less than comparable defenseman Ivan Provorov. He’ll now move to the third organization of his career and become the top-four shutdown defenseman that the Rangers have coveted for some time. And he’s one of the better shutdown blue liners, at that.

Over the past three years, Gavrikov has scored at a moderate pace, managing 22 goals and 105 points in 311 games between the Blue Jackets and Kings. Averaging over 22 minutes a night over that stretch, Gavrikov also totalled 507 blocked shots and 303 hits.

Although he maintained quality defensive metrics throughout his tenure in Columbus, Gavrikov improved dramatically upon his move to Los Angeles. During his two-and-a-half-year run with the Kings, Gavrikov managed a 53.5% CorsiFor% at even strength and an on-ice save percentage of 91.4% at even strength.

Gavrikov’s signing looks even better for the Rangers, considering they already employ one of the league’s top netminders. Last season, the Rangers produced the sixth-worst shots against total, but were able to finish around the mid-way point of the league in GA/G. Similarly, New York finished with the 11th-best penalty kill, meaning Gavrikov will help the team dramatically at even strength with a man disadvantage.

PHR’s Brennan McClain contributed significantly to this article. 

Lightning Re-Sign Gage Goncalves To Two-Year Contract

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According to a team announcement, the Tampa Bay Lightning have re-signed restricted free agent forward Gage Goncalves to a two-year, $2.4MM contract, with an AAV of $1.2MM.

Goncalves did well in his first real opportunity with the Lightning last season. Typically in a bottom-six role, Goncalves scored eight goals and 20 points in 60 contests, averaging 12:48 of ice time per game. Even in limited action and ice time, Goncalves’ physicality came through, finishing eighth on the team in hits with 71 checks.

A natural winger, he’s expected to remain in a similar role with the Lightning next season, making this a fair contract for both sides. Goncalves could theoretically move up the lineup in case of injury. Still, he doesn’t represent a better option than any of Tampa Bay’s other available wingers when the team is healthy.

Fortunately for the Lightning, the deal will keep Goncalves in Florida until his age-26 season, and they’ll still have another year of team control when Goncalves becomes a restricted free agent after the 2026-27 season. He’ll become eligible for arbitration when that time comes.

Given their lack of available cap space this offseason, the best path forward for the Lightning was retaining Goncalves, rather than finding someone to replace him in the team’s bottom six. He had fairly quality possession metrics with a 50.4% CorsiFor%, and held his own in the defensive zone with a 92.2% on-ice save percentage at even strength.

PHR’s Brennan McClain contributed significantly to this article. 

Flyers, Dan Vladař Agree To Terms On Two-Year Deal

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The Flyers have agreed to terms on a two-year contract with UFA goalie Daniel Vladař worth $3.35MM per season, per a team announcement.

After Jake Allen was taken off the market earlier this morning, Vladař became the best available option for the Flyers to fulfill their goaltending needs. He’s unlikely to take over the starting role outright in Philadelphia, but he should create a better tandem than they previously had with Samuel Ersson.

The shorter-term deal is likely some insurance for the Flyers, as it’s challenging to predict exactly what version of Vladař they’ll get. From 2022 to 2024, Vladař served as a backup and achieved a record of 35 wins, 21 losses, and 9 ties with the Flames, posting a SV% of .894 and a GAA of 3.05. Furthermore, his advanced metrics look even worse, considering his -20.1 Goals Saved Above Average in the same time frame.

Still, Vladař seemingly corrected many of his flaws this past season playing behind rookie Dustin Wolf. In the best season of his career, Vladař managed a 12-11-6 record in 30 games with a .898 SV% and 2.80 GAA, while securing a .586 quality start percentage.

Although those numbers wouldn’t typically generate much excitement, they’re far superior to anything the Flyers had available last season. Ersson recorded the highest save percentage on the team with a .883 line, while the team itself finished with a measly .879.

At the very least, Vladař should bring more stability to Philadelphia’s crease. Furthermore, the two-year arrangement gives the Flyers more breathing room to wait until their competitive window completely opens to add a bigger fish between the pipes.

PHR’s Brennan McClain contributed significantly to this article. 

Kings Sign Corey Perry, Joel Armia

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The Kings are signing winger Corey Perry, TSN’s Bob McKenzie said on the network’s TV coverage of free agency today. It’s a one-year, bonus-laden contract for the 40-year-old, per McKenzie. Furthermore, Frank Seravalli adds that the Kings are also expected to sign Joel Armia. It’s a two-year deal for him, per Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic. LeBrun adds it’s a $2.5MM cap hit for Armia. The team confirmed both deals and a $2MM cap hit for Perry with an additional $2MM in potential performance bonuses.

This news will be headlined by Perry’s journey to yet another Pacific Division team. He was a legendary feature of the early-2000s Anaheim Ducks, even joining the squad on their run to the 2007 Stanley Cup. Perry was the gut punch backing Ryan Getzlaf’s jab – a role he filled for 14 seasons behind the Ducks captain. Perry recorded multiple impressive seasons across that span, routinely rivaling north of 30 goals and nearly 100 penalty minutes even through challenges with injury.

His career year stands proudly as the 2010-11 campaign, when he amassed 50 goals and 98 points, to go along with a staggering 104 penalty minutes. Perry led the NHL in goals, ranked fifth in total points, and was one of 43 players to record over 100 penalty minutes. He also led the league in even-strength goals, with 32. That red-hot season was enough to earn Perry the Hart Trophy as league MVP and the Rocket Richard Trophy as top scorer. It was one of many dominant seasons that led him to 372 goals, 776 points, and 1,110 penalty minutes over the course of 988 games in Anaheim. He remains the club’s all-time leader in penalty minutes, and top-three in all-time goals and points.

But while Perry will long be remembered for his time in Anaheim, he’s blazed an impressive career since leaving the club in the 2019-20 season, at the age of 34. That year kicked off a string of short-term stops across the league, including one year in Dallas, Montreal, and Chicago, as well as two years in Tampa Bay. He was never able to rediscover his flashy mix of goals and penalty minutes. He instead leaned heavily on the grinder role, even amassing 95 penalty minutes in 81 games of the 2021-22 season with the Lightning.

Perry seemed set on filling a stout, bottom-end role through the remainder of his career, until an unexpected split with the Blackhawks opened the door for him to join the Edmonton Oilers partway through the 2023-24 campaign. He finished that season with fairly quiet totals – 13 points in 38 games with the Oilers – but found a much stronger stride back to offense this season. Perry finished the year with 19 goals and 30 points in 81 games. He finished the year ranked fifth on the team in goals and eighth in points. He then climbed to fifth on the team in scoring during the 2025 playoffs, where he filled a pivotal role en route to 10 goals and 14 points in 22 games.

Perry will enter the 2025-26 season at 40 years old. He’s shown a persistent ability to contribute to the lineup and showed no signs of slowing down in Edmonton’s recent run to a Cup Final elimination. Even then, he doesn’t seem to be an assured bet for more than lofty penalty minutes and a third-line role. His grit could be exactly what the Kings need behind a skilled top-six.

The same can be said for Armia, who joins the team as a stout bet for bottom-six center after filling that role for the last seven years in Montreal. Armia challenged his career-high in scoring this year, with 11 goals and 29 points in 81 games, falling just shy of the 30 points in 58 games he managed in 2019-20. He added to his stat line this season a comfortable minus-two and only 16 penalty minutes. Armia stands at an imposing 6-foot-3, 216 pounds, but his 87 hits this season didn’t rank in even the top-1o of Canadiens players. Instead, Armia earned his keep through fluid plays and a drive into the low slot on both ends of the ice. He’s a diligent forward who has amassed 586 career appearances across 11 years in the NHL. He’s scored 103 goals and 207 points in those appearances. That should be hardy enough to command a bottom-end role, likely rotating through the third and fourth line, in the Kings’ system.

Photo courtesy of Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports.

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