Archives for August 2025

Latest On Mason McTavish

August 6, 2025 at 11:31 am CDT | by Josh Erickson 17 Comments

The Ducks haven’t been actively shopping the signing rights to restricted free agent Mason McTavish, but that hasn’t stopped teams from expressing trade interest, as the center remains without a contract. Fervent interest will presumably be helped along by his essentially dominating the market for young centers. Wild RFA Marco Rossi’s talks have all but dried up with little to no interest league-wide in the long-term contract he desires. The Canadiens, Hurricanes, and Red Wings have all shown serious interest – the last club chief among them, James Murphy of RG writes.

Without much talk of an offer sheet, a notion sources told Murphy to dispel with Anaheim having ample space to match, McTavish has little control over his destiny. Speculation has indicated he’s concerned about his long-term role with the Ducks after their offseason shopping spree added needed depth to their forward group, but there’s little to no appetite from the Ducks’ end to facilitate a trade unless he outright refuses to sign a contract.

All the teams interested have a clear need for a second-line center. Unlike in SoCal, where there’s still a small chance for him to compete with Leo Carlsson for long-term 1C duties, there wouldn’t be that upward mobility there for him with Nick Suzuki in Montreal and Sebastian Aho in Carolina not vacating their posts anytime soon. The Wings have the weakest top pivot out of the group in Dylan Larkin, but he still wouldn’t be walking into Day 1 first-line duties there if that’s his goal.

While McTavish may have the standard profile of a high-motor but not hugely offensively untapped 2C, his performance last season shows there could be more to behold. The 22-year-old posted a team-leading 22 goals in 76 games, and his 52 points finished three back of Troy Terry for the team lead. That’s highly impressive production in an offensively stifled system under outgoing head coach Greg Cronin, and with his 12.2% shooting rate remaining projectable, there’s significant 65-to-75-point breakout potential for him this season as the team presumably adopts a more aggressive style under Joel Quenneville.

If Anaheim begins entertaining offers for the 6’1″ pivot’s signing rights, though, they’ll be looking for a blue-chip right-shot defense prospect as the principal point of the return, Murphy reports. That means names like 2023 first-rounders Axel Sandin-Pellikka would need to be in play in Detroit’s case, or that year’s No. 5 pick David Reinbacher in Montreal’s. Draft-capital-wise, it’s logical from the Ducks’ perspective after using the No. 3 overall pick on McTavish in 2021.

Islanders Sign Sean Day To AHL Deal

August 6, 2025 at 9:14 am CDT | by Josh Erickson Leave a Comment

The AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders have signed left-shot defenseman Sean Day to a one-year AHL deal, according to a club announcement. He’ll presumably get a look in the Isles’ NHL camp on a PTO in hopes of turning that into an NHL contract before heading down to Bridgeport.

Day, 27, is long removed from his days as an “exceptional status” defender who gained entrance to high-level junior hockey in the OHL a year early. He was a third-round pick by the Rangers by the time he became draft-eligible in 2016 and never turned that into full-time NHL minutes. He only made his big-league debut a few years ago, skating in two games for the Lightning in the 2021-22 season.

The Belgium-born Canadian has spent most of his professional career in the Tampa organization, suiting up primarily for the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch from 2020-21 through 2023-24. His performance was inconsistent during that time, peaking with 40 points in 69 games in 2021-22 before bottoming out with only 14 assists in 63 games the following year.

Day landed another two-way contract with the Bolts for 2023-24 but again went without NHL action, posting a 5-14–23 scoring line in 54 games for Syracuse with a -3 rating. That led him to explore a short-term exodus to Europe, signing with HV71 of the Swedish Hockey League. He made 45 appearances for the top-flight club with diminished results. He had 11 points and a -18 rating in the regular season before adding an assist and a +4 rating in six relegation games to help them avoid demotion to the second-tier HockeyAllsvenskan for 2025-26.

He’ll be one-and-done overseas as he returns to a more comfortable environment in North America, this time without the initial opportunity for an NHL call-up. He’ll provide 379 games of pro experience to a reshaped Bridgeport blue line that should have some younger, dynamic Isles prospects like Isaiah George and Jesse Pulkkinen playing significant roles.

Jaydon Dureau Signs AHL Deal In Jets Organization

August 6, 2025 at 7:58 am CDT | by Josh Erickson Leave a Comment

The Jets’ AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose, announced yesterday that they’ve signed forward Jaydon Dureau to a one-year contract. He could be in training camp with the Jets next month on a PTO before heading to Manitoba’s camp later in September.

Dureau, 24, never broke through as a full-time AHLer after being drafted by the Lightning in the fifth round in 2020. He was nonetheless a productive player for their ECHL affiliate, the Orlando Solar Bears, where he had his best showing yet in 2024-25 with a 14-15–29 scoring line in 32 games. The 6’0″, 176-lb winger averaged 0.71 points per game with a +14 rating in 103 appearances for the Bears over the last three seasons, having signed his entry-level contract with Tampa Bay in 2022 shortly before his rights were due to expire.

In the AHL, the Saskatchewan native only managed 36 appearances with the Syracuse Crunch during his tenure in Tampa’s organization. He was only good for three goals and four assists for seven points in that time, just 0.19 points per game.

Understandably, the Lightning opted not to qualify Dureau in June and he became an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Presumably without any NHL two-way deals or notable European offers there for him, he’ll take an AHL pact with the Moose as he tries to carve out a full-time role on the second rung on the ladder of North American professional hockey. If he can’t break camp with the Moose, he’ll be slated for a fourth season spent primarily in the ECHL – this time with Winnipeg’s affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals.

The Jets already have 13 forwards under contract who are projected to begin the season in Manitoba, per PuckPedia. That means Dureau will face an uphill battle for playing time there, especially with the Moose already having four other players on AHL deals prior to his signing.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: New Jersey Devils

August 5, 2025 at 9:00 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose 1 Comment

Navigating the salary cap is one of the most important tasks for a front office. Teams that can avoid total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those who don’t often see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation for the 2025-26 season. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of PuckPedia. We’re currently covering the Metropolitan Division, next up are the Devils.

New Jersey Devils

Current Cap Hit: $89,368,333 (below the $95.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

D Seamus Casey (two years, $950K)
F Arseni Gritsyuk (one year, $925K)
D Simon Nemec (one year, $918.3K)

Potential Bonuses
Casey: $350K
Gritsyuk: $500K
Nemec: $3.25MM
Total: $1.1MM

Gritsyuk has come over after some productive seasons in the KHL to ideally deepen their attack offensively. His contract has a November 15th European Assignment Clause so even if he starts in the minors with Utica, he can’t stay there for long. If he can stick with New Jersey full time, he could have a chance of getting at least one of his ‘A’ bonuses.

Casey was quite productive in a limited stint with the Devils last season where he had eight points in 14 games while producing at a similar per-game rate with Utica. He could be viewed as a regular this season or could be the first recall with the latter making his bonuses unlikely and likely moving him toward a bridge deal in 2027. Nemec saw very limited time with New Jersey, instead spending a big chunk of the season with the Comets, an outcome he wasn’t too pleased with. He’s likely to fill a depth role if he’s up with the big club which makes his $1MM in ‘A’ bonuses unlikely. A short-term second contract makes sense for both sides; if Nemec can lock down a regular role this season, it could land around the $2MM mark.

Signed Through 2025-26, Non-Entry-Level

F Paul Cotter ($775K, RFA)
F Evgenii Dadonov ($1MM, UFA)
G Nico Daws ($812.5K, RFA)
F Juho Lammikko ($800K, UFA)
G Jacob Markstrom ($4.125MM, UFA)*

*-Calgary is retaining an additional $1.875MM of Markstrom’s contract

Potential Bonuses
Dadonov: $2.25MM

Dadonov provided Dallas with some solid secondary scoring last season, notching 20 goals and 20 assists despite playing less than 14 minutes a night. However, given his age (36), his offers were bonus-laden. He can hit $1.25MM of those by simply reaching 50 games (250K for each ten) with some additional incentives unlockable by team playoff success. Given that Dadonov acknowledged his offers were similar to this one, it’s safe to say that this type of structure will likely be what he receives moving forward as well.

Lammikko spent the last three years in Switzerland but was brought back to North America with a one-way deal. He’s likely to battle for a spot on the fourth line and when you factor in his performance in his first stint in the NHL, there could be a bit of room to grow the contract but he’s likely to stay around the $1MM mark next time out. Cotter potted 16 goals last season despite being in the bottom six while being one of the more physical players in the league. That type of output will look good in an arbitration hearing and while they’re not direct comparables, it wouldn’t be shocking if his camp was eyeing the $3MM per season that Columbus gave to Mathieu Olivier a few months ago.

Markstrom had a solid first season in New Jersey, helping to stabilize a position that had its challenges before then. However, he’ll be 36 when his next deal kicks in. A three-year deal might be doable but it’d be surprising to see him land around the $8MM mark that some other proven starters have received. A small raise on his full cap hit could be doable though. Daws projects to be the third goalie but it would be surprising to see him get through waivers unclaimed so if the Devils don’t want to risk it, they’ll have to keep him up with the big club. If that happens and his playing time is limited, he might not be able to command much more than his $892.5K qualifying offer.

Signed Through 2026-27

D Brenden Dillon ($4MM, UFA)
F Cody Glass ($2.5MM, UFA)
F Nico Hischier ($7.25MM, UFA)
F/D Kurtis MacDermid ($1.15MM, UFA)
F Dawson Mercer ($4MM, RFA)
F Stefan Noesen ($2.75MM, UFA)
F Ondrej Palat ($6MM, UFA)

Hischier’s contract looked a little risky when it was first signed as he was coming off a 47-point sophomore season. While expectations were still high for the first-overall pick, this deal wouldn’t have aged well if the offense didn’t come around. But it did do just that as he has become one of the top defensive centers in the NHL while reaching the 60-point mark in four straight seasons. Since Hischier started in the NHL at 18, he’ll only be 28 when his next contract begins, meaning he’s a strong candidate for another max-term pact, seven years with New Jersey or six elsewhere. A sizable raise should be coming his way as he could push past the $9MM mark on his next contract.

Palat’s contract simply hasn’t worked out as planned. Signed to be a secondary scorer, he instead has seen his per-game output drop to the lowest rates of his career with a corresponding drop in ice time to under 14 minutes per game. Assuming that trend continues, he’s someone they might be looking to incentivize a team to take while a buyout could be on the table next summer as well. Palat still has some value but his market rate is less than half of what he’s making. It wasn’t that long ago that Mercer looked like a can’t-move core piece but his output has tailed off the last two seasons as well. After putting up 56 points in his sophomore year, he has only put up 33 and 36 since then. He’ll be owed a $4.25MM qualifying offer two years from now with arbitration rights but as things stand, he’d be hard-pressed to land any sort of notable raise.

Noesen parlayed a pair of quietly efficient seasons in Carolina into this deal, one that more than doubled his career earnings. The early return looks positive as he’s coming off a career year and played higher up the lineup than he did with the Hurricanes. If this continues, he could push more toward the $4MM range next time. New Jersey originally didn’t plan to re-sign Glass but assessed what the center market was going to look like and ultimately brought him back. He has shown flashes of top-six upside but has largely been a bottom-six option in his career, meaning that this is the price range he’ll continue to be in unless he can break through offensively. MacDermid has sparsely played in recent years and when he has suited up, playing time has been minimal. While they’d like to keep an enforcer around, he’s also a candidate to be waived if they need more money to re-sign a certain restricted free agent that we’ll get to shortly. Given his limited usage, he might be closer to the minimum salary on his next contract.

Dillon was his usual self in his first season with New Jersey. He was last in ATOI among full-time blueliners but still logged right around his career average in playing time. He killed penalties, blocked shots, and played with physicality and as we’ve seen in recent years, that profile is starting to cost more. However, Dillon will be turning 37 early in his next contract so he could be in a spot like Dadonov where he’ll have to go year-to-year moving forward.

Signed Through 2027-28

D Dougie Hamilton ($9MM, UFA)
D Jonas Siegenthaler ($3.4MM, UFA)

In his prime, Hamilton was a premier offensive defender. He’s not in his prime now but is still an above-average one, albeit one who has dealt with some injury issues the last couple of years. No longer a top-pairing player, his contract skews toward the above-market side and will likely remain there for the next three years. By the time he hits the open market again at 35, his price tag might be closer to half of this amount. Siegenthaler has been a reliable stay-at-home player in New Jersey but, like Hamilton, has had some injury issues. He’ll need to stay healthier moving forward if he wants to push past the $4MM mark on his next contract.

Signed Through 2028-29

F Connor Brown ($3MM, UFA)

Brown’s decision to spend a second season in Edmonton was a wise one as he had a 30-point effort and a strong playoff run, helping him earn a contract larger and longer than many expected. If he stays around the 30-point mark, that production, coupled with his capable defensive game, should be enough to give the Devils at least a reasonable return on this deal.

Signed Through 2029-30 Or Longer

G Jake Allen ($1.8MM through 2029-30)
F Jesper Bratt ($7.875MM through 2030-31)
F Jack Hughes ($8MM through 2029-30)
D Johnathan Kovacevic ($4MM through 2029-30)
F Timo Meier ($8.8MM through 2030-31)
D Brett Pesce ($5.5MM through 2029-30)

The Devils paid a high price for Meier, both in terms of the contract and what they gave up to get him from San Jose a little more than two years ago. The early returns haven’t been great. While he notched 40 goals in 2022-23, he hasn’t reached 30 in the two years since then, nor has he even reached 55 points. He’s producing more like a second liner while being paid like a top liner which isn’t ideal, even with the premium that teams often have to pay for power forwards with any sort of good offensive track record. But even with that, this probably isn’t viewed as a significant overpayment by other teams given the scarcity of players like him in the league. It’s never going to be a positive-value contract but it shouldn’t be an issue for New Jersey.

Hughes, on the other hand, has been a value deal for a little while already and projects to be so for the remaining five seasons. He’s a legitimate high-end talent making lower-end top-line money while playing a premium position. The best may still be yet to come too. Depending on how he and the cap progress over the next half-decade, it’s not unfathomable that he could come close to doubling this price in 2030. Bratt has been a consistent top-line producer for four years now, averaging just under a point per game over that span while being a solid defensive winger as well. And yet, he still arguably flies under the radar. Right now, this is a fair-market contract if not a small bargain; it will become more of a bargain as the cap continues to rise.

Pesce is one of the few true shutdown defensemen to get a big contract on the open market, coming over last summer from Carolina. His offensive game has tailed off a bit the last couple of years but he’s a strong enough defensive player to provide them with solid value for at least the next few seasons. Kovacevic was a low-cost pickup from Montreal last summer and completely exceeded expectations, going from a projected role player to an every-game core defender. He signed this extension early and given how few options there were in free agency, he ultimately might have left money on the table in doing so.

Allen was expected to be the top goalie available in a weak free agent class at that position but signed just before the market opened up. Five years is a risk considering he turns 35 later this week but they’re also going to get him at a below-market price for a while. The last year or two could be a problem but Allen should provide lots of surplus value in the first few seasons to make up for it.

Still To Sign

D Luke Hughes

The Devils would undoubtedly like to sign Hughes to a max-term deal. However, the price tag for such an agreement would likely push past his brother’s $8MM AAV and that’s something they simply don’t have the cap space for, short of carrying a smaller roster when everyone’s healthy. (Starting Kovacevic on LTIR could buy them some short-term flexibility if nothing else.) But if they don’t want to carry closer to the minimum number of skaters or cut anyone else off the roster, a short-term bridge deal might be what they have to work out. Even that contract would take up the bulk of their remaining cap space.

Buyouts

None

Retained Salary Transactions

None

Carryover Bonus Overage Penalty

$1MM

Best Value: (non-entry-level) J. Hughes
Worst Value: Palat

Looking Ahead

GM Tom Fitzgerald has his work cut out for him over the next few weeks. Can he find a way to open up some cap space, allowing him to sign the younger Hughes to a longer-term deal or will they have to bridge him? Either way, the end result isn’t likely to yield much spendable cap space, putting them in a spot where they might be hard-pressed to do much at the trade deadline while also setting themselves up for a bigger bonus overage penalty next year, assuming Dadonov stays healthy.

The flexibility should be opening up soon enough. They have around $24MM in space for 2026-27, a number that obviously will go down when Hughes signs but that’s enough room to keep Markstrom and keep the rest of the core intact. But for 2027-28, they have more than $62MM in flexibility. That will be the time that Fitzgerald can really start to reshape his roster if he sees fit. It’ll be tight for a little while yet but more breathing room on the cap side is coming.

Photos courtesy of Charles LeClaire and Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images.

Snapshots: Kochetkov, Juntorp, Jobst, Behm

August 5, 2025 at 7:57 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

Hurricanes goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov is coming off a bit of a quieter year after his save percentage went down from .911 in 2023-24 to just .897 last season. It appears there might be a reason for that as the netminder recently told Sports.ru’s Dmitry Shevchenko that he started playing through some injuries in November with some lingering throughout the season; the only time he missed was due to a concussion. Kochetkov is set to partner up with Frederik Andersen as the tandem in Carolina once again next season and the Hurricanes will likely be counting on him to play at least 40 games for the third straight year. They’ll be hoping that a healthier Kochetkov will be a better one between the pipes.

Vancouver Canucks Sign Vitali Kravtsov

August 5, 2025 at 4:45 pm CDT | by Brennan McClain 6 Comments

4:45 p.m.: Shortly after the Canucks announced the signing, PuckPedia alerted the public to Kravtsov’s contract details. He’ll earn a league minimum salary at the NHL level and a $450K salary in the AHL. If he fails to register 16 or more games next season, he’ll become a Group VI free agent next offseason.

4:11 p.m.: The former ninth overall pick of the 2018 NHL Draft is coming back to North America. According to a team announcement, the Vancouver Canucks have signed Vitali Kravtsov to a one-year, two-way contract for the 2025-26 season.

The native of Vladivostok, Russia, was originally drafted by the New York Rangers after playing in 35 games for KHL’s Traktor Chelyabinsk. Despite only scoring four goals and seven points that year, Kravtsov had previously recorded 13 goals and 36 points in 41 games with a +18 rating for the MHL’s Belye Medvedi Chelyabinsk. He was ranked as the third-best European prospect by NHL Central Scouting.

He performed much better in the KHL after being drafted by the Rangers, scoring eight goals and 21 points in 50 games, with an additional two assists in four postseason contests. He made his debut in North America during the 2019-20 season, scoring six goals and 15 points in 39 games for the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack. Finally, just three years after being drafted, Kravtsov debuted for the Rangers during the 2020-21 campaign.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic at the time, Kravtsov spent the early part of the year back in the KHL, scoring 16 goals and 24 points in 49 games. He debuted in the NHL in early April, skating in 10:45 of the Rangers’ shootout loss to the Buffalo Sabres on April 3rd. Unfortunately, despite seeing his ice time increase down the stretch, Kravtsov finished the season with two goals and four points in 20 games with a -6 rating. His possession and defensive metrics were abysmal, averaging a 43.9% CorsiFor% at even strength, and an 89.7% on-ice save percentage at even strength.

Feeling that he needed more developmental time, Kravtsov was again loaned to the Traktor Chelyabinsk for the 2021-22 campaign, scoring six goals and 13 points in 19 games, with another seven goals and 10 points in 15 playoff contests. Inspired by his postseason performance, the Rangers brought Kravtsov back to North America for the 2022-23 season.

His second year in New York went mildly better than the first, scoring three goals and six points in 28 games with a +6 rating. Ultimately, the Rangers had seen enough from their recent top draft selection, and they traded him to the Canucks on February 25, 2023, for William Lockwood and a 2026 seventh-round pick. Similarly, Kravtsov had a disappointing showing with the Canucks, scoring one goal and one assist in 16 games to finish out his second year in the NHL.

For the third time since making his professional playing debut in North America, Kravtsov left the NHL for Traktor Chelyabinsk, signing a two-year agreement with them after the 2022-23 NHL season. Since he was a restricted free agent at the time, the Canucks retained his negotiating rights should he ever return to NHL action.

His two-year tenure with Traktor was highly successful. He registered 45 goals and 92 points in 121 games, along with a +27 rating, including another nine goals and 12 points in 33 playoff contests. Given that it’s a two-way deal, Kravtsov will likely start the 2025-26 season with the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks, while maintaining the possibility of being recalled to Vancouver should his second stint with the team prove successful.

Summer Synopsis: Washington Capitals

August 5, 2025 at 3:28 pm CDT | by Brennan McClain 2 Comments

Now more than a month into the new league year, the bulk of the heavy lifting has been done from a roster perspective. Most unrestricted free agents have found new homes, the arbitration period has come and gone, and the trade market has cooled. Accordingly, it’s a good time to take a look at what each team has accomplished this offseason. We begin with a look at Washington.

Although they were unable to secure the second Stanley Cup in franchise history, the 2024-25 campaign was a monumental one for the Washington Capitals. Thanks in part to a loaded defensive core and standout goaltending, the Capitals surprisingly finished as the top team in the Eastern Conference, one year after qualifying for the postseason due to a tiebreaker. Outside of their play on the ice, team icon Alex Ovechkin broke the all-time goal record, surpassing Wayne Gretzky against the New York Islanders on April 6th. Still, after an offseason of little changes, will the Capitals be able to repeat their dominance?

Draft

1-27 – F Lynden Lakovic, Moose Jaw (WHL)
2-37 – F Milton Gästrin, MoDO (Sweden U20)
3-96 – F Maxim Schäfer, Berlin (DEL)
5-155 – F Jackson Crowder, Chicago (USHL)
6-180 – D Aron Dahlqvist, Brynäs IF (Sweden U20)

Despite having fewer selections than normal and choosing toward the end of each round, given their finish in the standings, the Capitals did fairly well in the 2025 NHL Draft. Their success in the draft is weighed heavily by Lakovic, whom the team selected toward the end of the first round.

Lakovic was projected to be a mid-first-round talent, but fell approximately 10 spots to Washington. The Kelowna, British Columbia native recently completed his second season with the WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors, scoring 27 goals and 58 points in 47 games with a -25 rating. He’s a big winger with a powerful shot and good puck-handling skills. He has some deficiencies to sort out on the defensive side of the puck, though much of that comes through on-ice maturity, especially for wingers.

Other than that, the pair of Gästrin and Schäfer could see NHL playing time at some point in the foreseeable future, but they aren’t expected to turn into much. The former is coming off a solid year with MoDo Hockey’s U20 team, scoring 18 goals and 42 points in 40 games with a +6 rating. Still, a more accurate projection will be available next offseason, once he’s completed his first year in the SHL.

Trade Acquisitions

D Declan Chisholm (from Minnesota)

Unlike last offseason, the Capitals made very few trades this offseason. The only trade they made was with the Minnesota Wild, acquiring Chisholm and a sixth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft for Priskie (who has since signed with the KHL’s Sibir Novosibirsk) and a 2025 fourth-round pick.

Chisholm won’t get much playing time with the Capitals, unless injuries start to mount, since he was largely acquired to replace Alexeyev, who signed with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Still, Chisholm is coming off the best season of his brief NHL career (for his standards), scoring two goals and 12 points in 66 games for the Wild last season with a -5 rating, while averaging approximately 17 minutes of ice time per game.

UFA Signings

D Louis Belpedio (two years, $1.55MM)*
F Anthony Beauvillier (two years, $5.5MM)^
F Graeme Clarke (one year, $775K)*
F Sheldon Rempal (one year, $775K)*
D Calle Rosen (one year, $775K)*

*-denotes two-way contract
^-denotes re-signing

Like their effort in the trade market, the Capitals also did very little on the free agent market. Their biggest free agent signing was a re-sign, as they brought back Beauvillier on a two-year deal after a solid performance after the trade deadline. Washington acquired Beauvillier from the Penguins for a 2025 second-round pick, and he rewarded them with two goals and five points in 18 games down the stretch. He was a bigger factor in the postseason, scoring two goals and six points in 10 games.

In a less headline-worthy deal, the Capitals brought former Vegas Golden Knight winger, Rempal, back to North America on a two-way contract. Rempal was never a notable player during his time in Nevada, but he could prove to be a quality depth option in Washington. He had an impressive year with the KHL’s Salavat Yulaev Ufa, scoring 31 goals and totaling 61 points in 68 games, along with a +7 rating. He also added eight goals and 21 points in 19 postseason contests.

Even though they didn’t win the sweepstakes, it’s important to note that the Capitals were among the finalists for Nikolaj Ehlers’ services before he ultimately signed with the Carolina Hurricanes. If Washington were willing to procure a player of Ehlers’ talent, it could be something to watch out for during the 2025-26 season. Although it’s unlikely the Capitals deal from their depth of impressive young talent on the roster, they could go big-game hunting toward the deadline season if they’re in a position to make the postseason.

RFA Re-Signings

D Martin Fehervary (seven years, $42MM)
F Hendrix Lapierre (one year, $850K)

*-denotes two-way contract

Much like they did with the rest of their defensive core throughout the regular season, the Capitals extended Fehervary on a long-term contract. He had the best season of his career last year, despite having the lowest ATOI of his career since the 2019-20 season. Fehervary scored five goals and 25 points in 81 games with a +18 rating, averaging 19 minutes of ice time per game. He finished with the second-most blocked shots, third-most hits, and finished third among defensemen (with 65 or more games played) in on-ice save percentage at even strength (90.3%).

The team also re-signed Lapierre, who they are hoping can finally break out this upcoming season. After scoring eight goals and 22 points in 51 games for the Capitals during the 2023-24 campaign, Lapierre had a significant drop-off last season, only tallying eight assists in 27 games. It was apparent that Washington lost all confidence in Lapierre’s game last season, and he’ll need a big rebound season if he hopes to have any staying power within the organization.

Departures

D Alexander Alexeyev (Pittsburgh, one year, $775K)
F Nicklas Backstrom (Brynäs IF, SHL)
D Ethan Bear (NY Islanders, one year, $775K)*
F Lars Eller (Ottawa, one year, $1.25MM)
F Alex Limoges (Dinamo Minsk, KHL)
F Andrew Mangiapane (Edmonton, two years, $7.2MM)
F T.J. Oshie (Retired)
F Luke Philp (Färjestad BK, SHL)
D Chase Priskie (traded to Minnesota)
F Taylor Raddysh (NY Rangers, two years, $3MM)
F Michael Sgarbossa (HC Lugano, NL)
G Hunter Shepard (Ottawa, one year, $775K)*

*-denotes two-way contract

Outside of Mangiapane, the Capitals didn’t lose too much this offseason. The team’s recent departures mostly include depth players who had little impact during their dominant run in the Eastern Conference last season.

Even Mangiapane, who largely played in the bottom-six for Washington last season, finished 10th on the team in scoring with 14 goals and 28 points in 81 games. Thankfully, the Capitals already have an in-house replacement for Mangiapane in the 2023 eighth-overall pick, Ryan Leonard. Leonard only scored one goal and one assist through 17 combined regular-season and playoff games for the Capitals last season. Still, he should prove far better in 2025-26 with more comfort around an NHL organization.

Should Washington run into any hiccups through their bottom-six to start the 2025-26 campaign, each of the players lost should be fairly replaceable on the trade market, without having to give up an arm and a leg. Given the lack of roster turnover this offseason, the Capitals are bringing back a very similar team to the one that dominated the Eastern Conference last season.

Salary Cap Outlook

According to PuckPedia, the Capitals will have $4.125MM in cap space to work with to start the 2025-26 campaign. Outside of a decision on defenseman John Carlson’s future and a potential long-term commitment to Connor McMichael, Washington doesn’t have any longer-term issues to worry about thanks to their extension efforts throughout the 2024-25 season.

After next season, the Capitals should have plenty of cap space to re-sign Carlson and McMichael, while also having the ability to procure any top names on the free agent market. Still, there could be a significant cultural change to worry about, especially if Ovechkin chooses to retire from the NHL.

Key Questions

Will Ovechkin Stay? Outside of officially becoming the game’s top goal-scorer, the 2024-25 campaign proved how much Ovechkin has left in the tank. Even at 39 years old, Ovechkin scored 44 goals and 73 points in 65 games, tying for third in the league in goal-scoring. Assuming that his goal-scoring ability finally starts to deteriorate next season, would there be any hesitation from the Capitals to re-sign the greatest player in franchise history if he can only score 20 goals? The answer is no. Ultimately, the decision will come down to Ovechkin’s desires. Outside of another Stanley Cup ring, there’s nothing he has left to accomplish in the NHL, and with his contract expiring after next season, he may want to return to Russia to wrap up his professional playing career, similar to other Russian icons like Pavel Datsyuk and Sergei Fedorov.

Will The Goaltending Hold Up? One of the key factors in Washington’s success last year was its goaltending, particularly Logan Thompson. Thompson finished the season with a 31-6-6 record in 42 starts with a .910 SV%, 2.49 GAA, and 12.4 Goals Saved Above Average. Despite having some solid years with the Golden Knights, it was the first time Thompson had received votes for the Vezina Trophy, placing fourth. Still, given his previous play in Vegas, there’s no reason to believe that Thompson will have any serious setbacks next season. Unfortunately, there are some injury concerns with Thompson, who lost significant playing time from 2022 to 2024 due to varying ailments. With only one quality season under his belt, is it safe for the Capitals to rely on Charlie Lindgren to keep the team’s head above water should Thompson have another serious injury?

Was Last Year A Fluke? There’s no questioning that outside the Capitals organization, few expected the year they had. Washington had not finished with more than 100 points since the 2018-19 campaign, a year after they won their first Stanley Cup championship. Given that Washington had a 20-point fall in the standings between the 2021-22 and 2022-23 campaign, is that something to be expected next season? The Capitals were bounced easily in the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs by the Carolina Hurricanes, and the Hurricanes will again be fierce competition next season. Thankfully, outside of the Hurricanes and a healthy New Jersey Devils team, the Capitals have little to deal with in the Metropolitan Division. They should face some healthy competition from the Columbus Blue Jackets and New York Rangers, but there’s little reason the Capitals can’t have a similar performance next season.

Photos courtesy of Peter Casey (Fehervary) and Charles LeClaire (Ovechkin)-Imagn Images.

Panthers Not Expected To Trade Evan Rodrigues

August 5, 2025 at 1:00 pm CDT | by Brennan McClain 9 Comments

Although they are free to do so during the offseason, the Florida Panthers are currently $3.725MM over the upper limit of the salary cap. This means that in a few months, the Panthers will need to trim nearly $4MM from their active roster for a cap-compliant lineup, and many have speculated that Evan Rodrigues and his $3MM salary could be a consequence of that reality.

Still, no guarantee it’ll happen, and it’s even appearing unlikely. In the most recent rendition of 32 Thoughts with Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the journalist said he doesn’t believe Florida will trade Rodrigues this offseason, despite the need for additional cap space.

Rodrigues’ spot on the roster was likely made safe by the recent injury update, again from Friedman, regarding winger Matthew Tkachuk. Friedman shared a few days ago that he doesn’t believe Tkachuk will play meaningful hockey until the Winter Olympics next season due to a torn adductor muscle suffered during the postseason. If that’s the case, the Panthers could place Tkachuk and his $9.5MM on LTIR for the first five months of the regular season, giving them more than enough space for cap compliance.

General Manager Bill Zito has already been commended this summer for his ability to retain a large portion of the lineup that won the franchise its second consecutive Stanley Cup championship a few months ago. Again, although they’d likely much rather have Tkachuk in the lineup for the entire regular season, Zito has avoided a situation where he’d have to move on from Rodrigues.

Rodrigues has never been a true top-six piece at the NHL level, but has offered teams the flexibility to move him anywhere around the lineup. The Panthers have gotten exactly what they expected out of him when they signed him to a four-year, $12MM agreement before the 2023-24 season.

Since donning the Panthers’ crest, Rodrigues has scored 27 goals and 71 points in 162 games with a +22 rating, averaging 15:12 of ice time per game. He’s been a consistent physical presence in the team’s middle-six, and has even provided them with quality defense as evidenced by his 91.9% on-ice save percentage at even strength.

Rodrigues, like many of his teammates in Sunrise, has elevated his performance during the postseason. In the Panthers’ two most recent Stanley Cup Final victories, he has scored nine goals and accumulated a total of 30 points in 45 games. Additionally, he has recorded 98 hits and averages 15:24 of ice time per game. He’s never been the most important player on Florida’s roster, or even the most well-known, but the franchise recognizes the value he brings and has done well to retain him.

Maple Leafs Sign William Villeneuve To Two-Way Deal

August 5, 2025 at 11:06 am CDT | by Josh Erickson 1 Comment

The Leafs announced they’ve signed right-shot defender William Villeneuve to a two-way deal for 2025-26. Financial terms were not disclosed, but in doing so, they took care of their last remaining RFA skater who hasn’t committed elsewhere for the upcoming season. Only goaltender Dennis Hildeby now remains as an unsigned RFA in the Toronto pipeline.

Villeneuve returns to Toronto for his fourth professional season. He was a fourth-round pick by the Maple Leafs back in 2020 out of QMJHL Saint John, where he won a Memorial Cup title two years later.

The 6’2″ rearguard has acclimated reasonably well to the pro game with AHL Toronto. An offensively gifted defenseman, he posted acceptable but stagnant point totals in his first two seasons before enjoying a breakout campaign in 2024-25. He was among the Marlies’ best players, posting a team-high +17 rating while leading their defense in scoring with 40 points (4 G, 36 A) in 55 games.

Villeneuve checked in as the No. 10 prospect in Toronto’s system in Scott Wheeler of The Athletic’s rankings back in January, but he’s undoubtedly climbed up the ladder since then with multiple names ahead of him being traded and his own second-half surge. Age will work against him to some degree – he’s entering his age-23 season with no NHL experience to speak of. But aside from defensive-minded 2024 first-rounder Ben Danford, he’s among their most intriguing defense prospects and may have the highest offensive ceiling out of the group currently in their pipeline.

There isn’t a pathway for him to make a surprise grab for an opening night job out of camp, but some organizational reshuffling has likely pushed him up the ladder for a recall opportunity. A strong start to the season with the Marlies should mean a big-league debut for him at some point in 2025-26.

Snapshots: Benák, Dornbach, Finland

August 5, 2025 at 9:24 am CDT | by Josh Erickson Leave a Comment

Wild fourth-rounder Adam Benák is headed to the CHL for his post-draft season. The OHL’s Brantford Bulldogs announced they’ve signed him to a development deal after selecting him second overall in this year’s CHL Import Draft.

While Benák has always displayed a high-ceiling offensive game, his 5’8″, 163-lb frame meant he was never going to challenge for a premier draft slot. Instead, the Czech pivot fell to Minnesota at No. 102 overall following a strong year with the USHL’s Youngstown Phantoms. The speedy two-way center led the team in scoring with 59 points (17 G, 42 A) in 56 games in his first season in North America, earning USHL All-Rookie Team and Second All-Star Team honors.

Benák has excelled in international play. He’s had 21 points in just 10 games for Czechia’s under-18 team at the last two Hlinka Gretzky Cups, winning a pair of silver medals, and also had seven points in four games at this year’s under-18 World Championship. He’ll almost surely land a spot on the country’s World Juniors team this winter.

Elsewhere from around the hockey world:

After mixed results in North America, former Wild minor-leaguer Casey Dornbach has signed in Austria with Pioneers Vorarlberg of the ICEHL. Undrafted, Dornbach garnered some NHL interest as a college free agent in 2023 but ended up settling for a deal with AHL Iowa. He managed just two points in 13 games for the club, instead spending most of his time in the ECHL before leaving for a role with Finland’s Jukurit midway through last season. The former ECAC Rookie of the Year had 40 goals and 124 points in 138 NCAA games with Harvard and Denver.
To the surprise of no one, Finland will continue with its defense-first mentality as it builds out its roster for the 2026 Olympics, head coach Antti Pennanen and GM Jere Lehtinen told NHL.com’s Varpu Sihvonen. They’re looking to defend their gold medal from the 2022 edition, this time with NHLers in tow. Sebastian Aho, Aleksander Barkov, Miro Heiskanen, Esa Lindell, Mikko Rantanen, and Juuse Saros have already been named to their roster. Interestingly enough, their head coach from the 2022 win, Jukka Jalonen, will now be behind the bench for host country Italy, who are groupmates with Finland.

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