Five Key Stories: 5/18/26 – 5/24/26
With the Conference Finals well underway, most teams are in offseason mode with as many coaching searches going on as there are teams still playing. Understandably, some of the notable news from the past seven days comes from behind the bench.
Offer Sheet Thresholds Set: With more teams having cap flexibility thanks to a big jump to the Upper Limit and a thinned-out UFA market, teams will have to get more creative to try to upgrade their rosters. That makes this summer’s offer sheet thresholds a little more intriguing. While it’s unlikely a team would go to the top tier (around $11.94MM, costing four first-round picks) but notably, a player could cost $4.77MM and only require a second-round pick in compensation if an offer sheet wasn’t matched. Meanwhile, third-round compensation would be between $1.575MM and $2.387MM. We haven’t seen that tactic used much in recent years (though the three latest ones were all successful) but it wouldn’t be shocking if more teams started sniffing around this option, assuming there are players willing to sign them.
Ruff’s Sticking Around: When Lindy Ruff returned behind the Buffalo bench in 2024, he only signed a two-year deal and it was expected that he’d make a decision after that about staying behind the bench, moving into an advisory role, or something else altogether. With how things went this season, it’s not surprising that he’s going to stay as their head coach after he signed a two-year extension. The Sabres ended a 14-year playoff drought after winning the Atlantic Division and fared pretty well in the playoffs, only falling in overtime in Game 7 in the second round. With that decision now done, GM Jarmo Kekalainen gets set for his first summer at the helm of the team.
Surgery For Gustavsson: Heading into the offseason, it looked as if one of Minnesota’s trade chips would come from between the pipes. With veteran Filip Gustavsson and youngster Jesper Wallstedt, one could presumably be moved. Instead, those plans are on hold after an announcement that Gustavsson will be undergoing hip surgery. At this point, it’s unknown if he will be available for training camp with a determination on that front to be made once the extent of the repairs is known after the procedure. Gustavsson is set to begin a new five-year, $34MM contract next season and teams will want definitive proof that he’s fully healthy before considering trading for that deal. Accordingly, the Wild’s tandem might remain intact after all heading into 2026-27.
Canucks Make A Change: With their new front office now in place, the Canucks have quickly made changes behind the bench. The team has fired head coach Adam Foote after just one season in that role, while three assistants were let go as well. Foote was promoted to the role last offseason after the team couldn’t reach a new contract with Rick Tocchet. But things went off the rails with the team finishing dead last and ultimately moving their top player, Quinn Hughes, to Minnesota. Now, GM Ryan Johnson will get to conduct a search if he wants although it wouldn’t be surprising if AHL Abbotsford head coach Manny Malhotra gets the nod. At least for now, Vancouver joins Toronto, Los Angeles, and Edmonton as teams looking for a new bench boss.
Two For Liljegren: When the Capitals acquired Timothy Liljegren at the trade deadline, it was a bit of a surprise that a non-playoff team would bring in a pending UFA. However, the team liked what it saw in limited action from him down the stretch and they rewarded him with a two-year, $6.5MM extension. The $3.25MM AAV is a small increase on the $3MM he made on his most recent deal. While the 27-year-old hasn’t exactly lived up to his first-round draft billing, he has been a serviceable bottom-pairing defender over the last five years. With Liljegren now signed, it looks more likely that pending UFA rearguard Trevor van Riemsdyk will not return for next season as Washington now has eight blueliners signed for next season.
Photo courtesy of Matt Blewett-Imagn Images.
Offseason Checklist: New York Islanders
The offseason has arrived for half of the league’s teams that aren’t taking part in the playoffs plus those who have already been eliminated. Accordingly, it’s now time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at the Islanders.
It has been a busy first year for GM Mathieu Darche. He traded away his top defenseman at the time on draft day and added a new franchise defender that same night. He made some in-season trades to try to help his team make a second-half push for the playoffs. Then, he made a big late-season coaching change in a last-ditch effort to help them get in with Peter DeBoer taking over for Patrick Roy. The start to his second year shouldn’t be as busy but he has some work to do roster-wise over the offseason.
Add Goaltending Insurance
While the Islanders were hoping that Semyon Varlamov would be able to return at some point during the season after undergoing a pair of replacement knee surgeries, they knew they’d need some insurance. With that in mind, they brought in David Rittich who wound up as a full-timer on New York’s roster. Varlamov, meanwhile, was able to return after the season, getting into two games on an LTIR conditioning loan with AHL Bridgeport.
At this point, the hope is that Varlamov will be ready to be Ilya Sorokin’s backup next season. Now healthy, he should be able to get a full offseason of training in and, while he’ll certainly be rusty, he should be available at the start of training camp.
But hope alone isn’t a viable or prudent strategy. Varlamov has played a total of 12 games combined over the past two seasons and hasn’t played in an NHL game since November 2024. They can hope that Varlamov returns to form and gives them 25 or so starts but there’s no guarantee he’ll be able to do so. Meanwhile, they don’t have a trusted third goalie in their system at the moment. The only other goalie signed for next season is recent college free agent signing Josh Kotai, and he’s not NHL-ready by any stretch.
At a minimum, adding another Rittich-like goaltender who could be a third-string option in a perfect world but a capable backup if called upon. If they’re worried about waivers, they may have to carry three netminders for a while. Depending on what happens there, they may need a veteran starter for AHL Hamilton as well, one who could be called up in a pinch. Sorokin gives them a great foundation between the pipes but the supporting cast needs to be added to in the coming weeks.
Determine Lee’s Future
Back in 2019, captain Anders Lee was slated to hit the open market. It looked like he was ultimately going to go to free agency but former GM Lou Lamoriello signed him on the opening day of free agency to a seven-year, $49MM deal. While his role now is certainly different compared to back then, the winger now finds himself a little more than a month away from being eligible to test free agency once again.
The 35-year-old has never been a high-end point producer, with his personal best being 62, set back in the 2017-18 campaign. However, he has been a steady scorer, notching at least 20 goals in eight of the last ten seasons. This season was one of the exceptions but he still managed 19, suggesting the big falloff in production hasn’t happened yet.
Although Lee is more of a middle-six forward than a top liner at this stage of his career, he’s set to benefit from a thin UFA class. While he certainly won’t come close to another seven-year deal at this stage of his career, it wouldn’t be entirely shocking if his AAV came in fairly close to this now-expiring contract. For example, AFP Analytics projects that a three-year deal for Lee would check in at a little over $6.6MM per season. That would certainly carry some risk for a player coming off a 42-point campaign but there’s also a wide expectation of some sticker shock on UFA contracts this summer. Alternatively, Lee could sign a one-year deal that makes him eligible for performance bonuses, giving the signing team a bit more cap flexibility.
Will the Islanders be that signing team? Darche would likely prefer to keep his captain around but he also needs to make some changes to a group that missed the playoffs and also try to get a bit more speed up front. But if he can keep Lee in the fold and shake the team up elsewhere, that might be his Plan A. We’ll see in the next five weeks or so if that plan works out.
Open Up Cap Space
To try to give his team some boosts, Darche added a pair of pricey contracts up front. First, they brought in Ondrej Palat from the Devils to help try to backfill Kyle Palmieri’s season-ending injury. Then, at the trade deadline, they paid a high price to add Brayden Schenn from St. Louis. In doing so, they took on an extra $12.5MM in spending for next season. They also went deep into LTIR to do so, meaning that the $3.5MM in bonuses Matthew Schaefer earned will all count against the books in 2026-27.
As a result, the Isles enter the summer with around $12.5MM in cap room, per PuckPedia. If they want to re-sign Lee, bring in goalie insurance, and likely a depth defender or two with Carson Soucy and Adam Boqvist set to hit the open market, they’ll basically be out of money at that point. While Pierre Engvall could wind up staying on LTIR, that’s not enough to move the needle in terms of giving them flexibility. And if he is cleared to return, waiving and sending him to the minors would only create $1.225MM in room.
There are some potential change-of-scenery candidates, especially up front. Anthony Duclair simply hasn’t fit in over his first two seasons but now that there are only two years left on his deal (at a $3.5MM price tag), they might be able to offload that contract for cap flexibility. With Palat not faring particularly well following the swap, moving the final year of his deal would require paying down part (if not the maximum of 50%) of it, he’s a potentially viable candidate. Max Shabanov, a pending RFA, could potentially be flipped with an eye on replacing his back-end roster spot with someone making closer to the minimum salary.
Simply making one of these moves wouldn’t be enough to bring in anyone of consequence, assuming that Lee ultimately re-signs. But if they can move out a couple of their higher-paid surplus depth pieces, they might be able to try to make an addition of consequence.
Add More Scoring
That addition of consequence, if they’re able to afford one, needs to come up front. This is a team that has had trouble scoring for a while now. The last time they were above-average in the goals scored department was back in 2017-18, when they finished seventh overall. Five players from that team are still with the Isles, one of them being Lee (a pending UFA) and three more being defensemen. Since then, they have been outside the top 20 in the goals scored department.
They upped their 2024-25 total by seven goals this season, bringing them to 229, or 2.79 per game, good for 25th in the league. Another incremental gain would certainly help but if they want to become more than just a bubble Wild Card team, they’re going to need to aim higher.
New York had two forwards surpass the 50-point mark this season, Mathew Barzal (the other 2017-18 holdover) and Bo Horvat. Lee was next at 42 and he may or may not be back. It’s fair to say that there’s a definitive need for a top-six forward (or two, or three, potentially). Of course, they’re probably not going to be able to afford to add multiple top-six forwards but even one would be a big addition.
In terms of trying to shore up their depth scoring, they could look internally. Victor Eklund made his NHL debut at the end of the season and might not be too far away from being ready for an extended audition. If he could be even a secondary contributor while Darche finds a way to add another decent scoring threat, that could go a long way toward getting them back into the top 20 in the goals department, bolstering their playoff hopes in the process.
Photo courtesy of Brad Penner-Imagn Images.
Kings GM Ken Holland Updates Coaching Search
Beyond being one of the teams believed to want to speak to former Vegas head coach Bruce Cassidy, things have been relatively quiet for the Kings on the coaching front. In a recent interview with Zach Dooley for LA Kings Insider, GM Ken Holland suggested that a hiring isn’t exactly imminent and he is now off scouting at the Memorial Cup.
D.J. Smith took over on an interim basis from former head coach Jim Hiller and Holland noted that he is still in consideration for the position. He noted that player feedback from the exit interviews was positive and the team did indeed play well enough to at least sneak into the playoffs although the GM was quite to note that their struggles against top-tier teams continued; they were swept by the Avs in the first round.
While Holland didn’t go as far as saying how many coaches were specifically under consideration, he mentioned four to eight multiple times to Dooley so it stands to reason that the true number is somewhere in there. At this point, it doesn’t appear as if they’re intent to wait on any other teams to be eliminated, taking possible options from Colorado, Vegas, Carolina, and Montreal off the table.
Holland noted that he’s in the middle of the interview process which suggests that a hire isn’t likely to be announced in the near future, especially with him off scouting for the next week. It may not come too long after that, however, as he noted that he’d like to have the hiring in place a couple of weeks before the draft, which begins on June 26th. He also indicated that improving special teams and production from the back end are two particular points of emphasis for whoever gets the position.
While Dooley’s interview didn’t name any other specific candidates beyond Smith, Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal suggested that former Edmonton bench boss Jay Woodcroft would be a plausible front-runner for the position. He mentioned that while Holland was the one to fire him with the Oilers, the decision ultimately wasn’t his to make and came from higher up the food chain. Accordingly, if Holland still feels that way about Woodcroft (currently an assistant with Anaheim), it would make sense that he’d at least be under serious consideration.
At this point, Holland can afford to wait another week or so to see if the Golden Knights ultimately elect to make Cassidy available to interview for other jobs but after that, he will need to move fairly quickly. Whether it’s Smith, Woodcroft, or someone else, we’ll see a final decision made next month.
Contract Talks For Alex Tuch To Resume In Next Couple Of Weeks
Heading into the playoffs, all talks of a new contract for Sabres winger Alex Tuch were put on hold, something that is fairly commonplace to not serve as a distraction in the midst of a postseason run. Now that Buffalo has been eliminated, those conversations can resume.
But it doesn’t appear as if they’re going to pick up in the immediate future. The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta recently suggested on a recent DFO Rundown (video link) that substantive negotiations between the two sides could still be two or three weeks away from really picking back up.
The 30-year-old is coming off another solid season, one that saw him surpass the 30-goal mark for the third time in four years. He ultimately picked up 33 tallies along with 33 assists in 79 games before putting up a bit of a mixed bag in the playoffs. Tuch averaged a point per game against Boston in the first round but was held off the scoresheet entirely in a seven-game loss to Montreal.
Still, that shouldn’t affect his market too much as he enters as the top forward available, should he make it to July 1st unsigned. The long-term consistency offensively will outweigh the rough couple of weeks to end his first playoff run. It stands to reason that his camp would be eyeing Adrian Kempe’s deal with Los Angeles – eight years, $85MM – as a comparable, one that was just signed earlier this season. As Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News noted, their overall offensive numbers are reasonably close with Kempe a bit better offensively and Tuch the better defensive player. Accordingly, that should put Tuch’s next price tag in that range.
Unfortunately for Buffalo, that represents the bulk of their cap space this summer as they hit the offseason with just under $13MM in cap room, per PuckPedia, with a $6.444MM buyout charge to Jeff Skinner really affecting them. Additionally, winger Zach Benson is a pending restricted free agent and is someone who GM Jarmo Kekalainen has said he’d like to sign to a long-term agreement as well. Barring further roster moves, they can’t do that and re-sign Tuch.
That could very well be why discussions with Tuch aren’t restarting right away. Knowing that he can’t sign Tuch and Benson long-term at this point, he might be focusing his energy on trying to open up some extra cap flexibility. That would then allow them to come back to the table with Tuch with something closer to a market-value offer that wouldn’t materially hinder their chances of locking up Benson as well. While trades are rare at this time of year, this is a time when teams start picking up discussions on that front to be ready for a busy period after the Stanley Cup Final concludes.
But there is certainly a risk to this approach as well. The longer Buffalo waits to rekindle discussions with Tuch, the easier it becomes for him to just wait a little longer to see what other options might be available on the open market. There is definitely a case for him to stay with his local team, one that’s on an upward trajectory. But being the best forward available also certainly will have its appeal in a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. For now, at least, he’ll have to wait a little while longer before the Sabres put their best foot forward in terms of an offer to keep him around.
Offseason Checklist: New Jersey Devils
The offseason has arrived for half of the league’s teams that aren’t taking part in the playoffs plus those who have already been eliminated. Accordingly, it’s now time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at New Jersey.
It’s safe to say this season didn’t go as planned for the Devils. Believed to be a team primed for a bounce-back year, it ultimately didn’t happen. As a result, there’s a new GM in town as Sunny Mehta has taken over from Tom Fitzgerald. Mehta has elected to keep head coach Sheldon Keefe around, taking one big item off their checklist. Here are some other things they’ll likely be looking to go over the coming months.
Decide Nemec’s Future
Things have gone well for two of the top three picks from 2022. Juraj Slafkovsky, the top pick, has become a top-line winger in Montreal while third-overall selection Logan Cooley looks like a fixture in Utah’s lineup for the long haul. But things haven’t gone as well for the blueliner selected between those two, Simon Nemec.
After getting into 60 games as a rookie in 2023-24 while averaging nearly 20 minutes a night of playing time, it looked like Nemec had made it. But things went in the wrong direction the following year, resulting in him spending more time in the minors than in the NHL. He became a full-timer on the roster this season and returned to his rookie-season usage while chipping in with 26 points in 68 games. That’s a step in the right direction, no doubt, but is he on his way to being a core piece like the other two?
The answer to that is uncertain, which is also an apt way to describe his situation in New Jersey. Nemec is a pending restricted free agent and with the rapid escalation of salaries, it’s fair to say he’ll be eyeing a significant raise from the $855K base salary he had this season. Potentially anticipating a tough negotiation, Fitzgerald was listening to calls on the youngster at the trade deadline with no deal coming to fruition. Nemec, meanwhile, had expressed frustration about his role in the past with recent conflicting reports suggesting that he might still be unhappy with his situation.
With how things went up and down on his rookie deal, it’s hard to see both sides agreeing on a long-term contract at a cap hit that’s comfortable for everyone. A bridge deal makes sense; AFP Analytics pegs a two-year bridge deal checking in around $4.4MM per season which is still on the higher side for someone who wasn’t a regular not that long ago. But, in this cap environment, some of these future bridge contracts are going to be on the high side.
If Mehta isn’t sold on Nemec’s upside or they’re too far apart in contract talks, a trade could still be on the horizon. A 22-year-old high pick who’s a right-shot defenseman is bound to have considerable trade value and he’d undoubtedly yield a strong return. Is that more valuable to the Devils than what they believe Nemec will be able to provide? They need to decide the answer to that this offseason.
Work On Hischier Extension
When Nico Hischier signed a seven-year, $50.75MM extension after his sophomore year in 2018-19, the move seemed a little risky. The salary cap was much lower back then, bypassing bridge contracts wasn’t as widely common as it is now, and a 47-point showing in his sophomore year wasn’t necessarily screaming ‘big contract’. That deal has certainly worked out quite well for New Jersey and with the captain set to enter the final season of that deal starting in July, he will be eligible for a contract extension at that time.
Hischier has only surpassed the 70-point mark once in his career (when he reached 80 in 2022-23) but he has notched between 60 and 69 points four times in the last five seasons. That type of offensive consistency is quite coveted, especially for centers. Meanwhile, he has been a Selke Trophy finalist and finished fourth in voting over the past five years as well. That type of defensive consistency is also quite coveted. Between that and the projected salary cap spikes, the 27-year-old is heading for quite a sizable raise on his next contract.
What type of price tag could he plausibly fetch? Let’s start by looking at the cap percentage. When he signed his current deal, Hischier received 8.9% of the cap. Forecasting that against the projected 2027-28 Upper Limit of around $113.5MM, that would put him at $10.1MM per season. Considering his current contract had four RFA years on it (his next one won’t have any) and his status in the league as a strong two-way center, it’s fair to say $10.1MM feels like the absolute minimum. Adding a million or two more to that number is a very realistic possibility. If Mehta doesn’t want to pay that (which would be a surprise, given his importance to the team), someone else undoubtedly will.
With Hischier signed through next season, this isn’t something that necessarily has to be completed this summer. But with a mid-September cutoff for an eight-year extension (when the new CBA fully kicks in), that stands as a bit of a pressure point for negotiations. And if the two sides are so far apart that a trade becomes likely (not a likely scenario), it’s better to know that now than in-season. But even with it not necessarily being overly urgent, expect this to be a big item on their summer checklist.
Clear Defensive Logjam
In the NHL, from a roster-building perspective, there are good problems to have and bad problems to have. The state of their back end is a good one. When their defensive group got fully healthy midseason, Keefe found himself rotating a few quality blueliners in and out of the lineup. That wound up seeing Dougie Hamilton get scratched with some scathing comments coming from his agent soon after, fueling trade speculation although a move never got across the finish line.
In fact, for all of the viable trade speculation surrounding their blueliners in the second half of the season, no moves were ultimately made. The logjam ultimately resolved itself when Brett Pesce landed on injured reserve right before the deadline but there’s no denying that the logjam still exists. New Jersey has $34.9MM committed to six blueliners next season, per PuckPedia. That doesn’t include Nemec so if Mehta doesn’t make a move, there’s a very good chance that the Devils will have the most expensive back end in the league next season. With less than $12MM in cap room and several roster spots to fill, moving out a defenseman works on multiple fronts.
The state of the market should work in New Jersey’s favor. Yes, other teams will know that they probably need to shed a defenseman but with the UFA class not exactly yielding a bumper crop of quality options, demand is going to outweigh supply. That should put Mehta in the driver’s seat to elicit a strong return.
It could be Hamilton getting a fresh start while clearing at least part of his $9MM cap charge off the books. It could be Nemec moving somewhere where he has a chance to play a bigger role to try to grow into the player his draft slot warranted. It could be Johnathan Kovacevic, the type of quality depth defender that stabilizes things on the third pairing but is now paid (at $4MM per season) to play a bigger role than that. All three are right-shot pieces, the side in even higher demand. If new management wants to shake up the team a bit, this is a logical spot to try to do so.
Add Firepower
Offense has been hard to come by under Keefe’s watch. They had a drop-off of 24 goals in his first season behind the bench while dropping from 12th to 20th league-wide in that department. This season, there was a similar-sized dip in scoring as they went down another 14 tallies while finishing 27th in goals scored. In two years, they’ve gone from a slightly above-average team offensively to one of the weaker ones while shedding nearly half a goal per game in the process.
Suffice it to say, this is a problem that needs to be addressed. With Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt, and Hischier, they have some quality pieces. Timo Meier has been more hit than miss since being acquired but he could still be part of the solution while Dawson Mercer, extension-eligible himself this summer, is a solid secondary piece. There’s a decent foundation to work off here.
Adding a top-six forward would certainly put them in the right direction toward trying to even get back to the middle of the pack. But beyond that, they need some more firepower in the bottom six. Evgenii Dadonov, a UFA pickup last summer, wound up being a flop, Nick Bjugstad had just two assists in 26 games after being acquired near the trade deadline, and Maxim Tsyplakov, added in the Ondrej Palat trade, had four points in 49 games between the two teams. Upgrading one or two of those lineup spots would also go a long way in helping their fortunes.
This is where clearing the defensive logjam should help. At a minimum, they’d shed enough cap space to afford an extra addition of some consequence up front. In a perfect world, it’d come in the same trade. That way, their remaining cap space could be deployed toward upgrading the back half of the forward group, allowing them to hit both parts here. That won’t turn them into a high-end offensive squad but even getting closer to the middle would be a big boost to their playoff odds next season.
Photo courtesy of Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images.
Lightning Re-Sign Scott Sabourin
Veteran Scott Sabourin will be sticking around in the Lightning’s organization for another year. The team announced today that they’ve signed the winger to a one-year, two-way contract extension. Financial terms were not disclosed but he’ll be guaranteed at least a $75K raise at the NHL level with that minimum salary moving up to $850K next season from $775K in 2025-26.
The 33-year-old joined Tampa Bay last summer on a one-year, two-way deal, one that worked out well for both sides. Sabourin played in 26 games with the Lightning this season, the second-highest NHL total of his career. He picked up a goal and four assists in those outings, along with 89 penalty minutes and 63 hits. That’s the type of physicality he’s been known for over his professional career, one that spans parts of 15 seasons.
Sabourin was on Tampa Bay’s roster for the playoffs and even got into a pair of games in the first round against Montreal, his first career NHL postseason action. For his career, he now has 73 career NHL appearances under his belt, collecting three goals, 10 assists, and 147 penalty minutes over parts of six seasons.
While he hasn’t been a big offensive producer in the NHL, Sabourin has been a reasonable producer in the minors. He played in 24 games with Syracuse this season, notching a respectable six goals and two assists. Prior to this season, Sabourin had at least 25 points in the minors in each of the last three years.
It’s likely that Tampa Bay envisions Sabourin filling the same role he did this season. For games where they expect things to get more physical, he’ll probably see time on the fourth line. Meanwhile, he can serve as a capable depth producer in Syracuse in between those outings, assuming he clears waivers to be eligible to be sent back to the Crunch.
Central Notes: Bedard, Fowler, Jiricek
With Connor Bedard set to become a restricted free agent on July 1st, talks on a new deal are well underway, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period recently reported on the DFO Rundown (video link). At this point, he noted that they’re examining both max-term options (eight years until mid-September, then seven years after that) or a bridge deal that would still have him under club control at its expiration. In that scenario, the contract couldn’t be any longer than three years. Bedard, the number one pick in 2023, had 30 goals and 45 assists in 69 games this season for the Blackhawks. Given his production so far and anticipated trajectory, AFP Analytics pegs a three-year bridge deal checking in at a $9.38MM AAV while a max-term eight-year agreement landing him $12.36MM per season. With the big jumps coming to the Upper Limit, Bedard could plausibly try to command more than that to forego his first four seasons of UFA eligibility.
Elsewhere in the Central:
- When Cam Fowler was traded to the Blues and signed an extension, he hoped to be getting out of a rebuild situation and onto more of a win-now club. However, with St. Louis now rebuilding or at least retooling, he finds himself in a very similar situation to his time in Anaheim, observes Matthew DeFranks of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (subscription link). The 34-year-old is beginning a new three-year, $18.3MM deal next season and he could very well become a trade candidate before too long. While Fowler has full trade protection, a chance to go to a team with aspirations of short-term success might be enticing enough for him to consider it.
- If Fowler winds up staying with the Blues, he’ll be asked to play a mentorship role for some of their young blueliners. One of those could be Adam Jiricek, who will be a full-time pro next season for the first time. Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic spoke with Jiricek’s junior coach (long-time NHL rearguard Jay McKee), who noted that Jiricek should warrant a long look in training camp and could be ready to play at the top level next season. The 19-year-old was the 16th pick in 2019 and had a dominant year with OHL Brantford, amassing 59 points in 55 regular season games and 22 more in 15 playoff contests. He’s now getting his feet wet with AHL Springfield, jumping right into their lineup as they look to move on to the Eastern Conference Finals tonight.
Free Agent Focus: Anaheim Ducks
Free agency is just over a month away, and teams are looking ahead to when it opens. Even with the UFA crop being thinned out in recent months, there will be some quality veterans set to hit the open market in July, while many teams also have key restricted free agents to re-sign. We start our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Ducks.
Key Restricted Free Agents
F Leo Carlsson – Let’s start with a big one. The second overall pick in 2023 showed plenty of promise in his first two seasons but took a big jump forward in 2025-26. He finished second on the team in scoring with 29 goals and 38 assists in just 70 games. He saw some shorthanded ice time. He upped his faceoff success rate. Basically, he took steps toward being the two-way top-line center the Ducks thought they’d be getting when they picked him. Now, he’s about to be paid like he is that player. A long-term deal would probably run the Ducks past the $11MM per season mark which would set the new benchmark for Anaheim’s forwards. A bridge deal, meanwhile, would keep the cost lower in the short term but even that could land in the $8MM range per year. GM Pat Verbeek has held a firm line in talks with core youngsters before. This could very well be another of those negotiations.
F Cutter Gauthier – That last sentence may wind up applying here as well. Gauthier led the Ducks offensively this season, notching 41 goals along with 28 helpers to finish two points up on Carlsson for the team lead. He even averaged a point per game in the playoffs while playing through a back injury. Wingers don’t often get the type of premium money that centers do and it should be noted that, unlike Carlsson, he isn’t eligible for an offer sheet after only playing once in the first year of his contract. Still, a long-term deal could approach the $9MM territory while a bridge pact would likely check in around the $6.5MM range. Carlsson is the headliner but Gauthier’s next deal is going to be a significant one as well.
D Pavel Mintyukov – The young blueliner hasn’t had quite the impact Anaheim hoped when they made him a top-ten pick back in 2022. An offensive dynamo in junior, the production hasn’t quite materialized in the NHL yet as he put up 28 points in his rookie year in 2023-24 and hasn’t returned to that mark since, notching 22 this season. Meanwhile, a lack of playing time earlier in the year had him believed to be amenable to a trade. With that in mind, there’s a solid case to make that a short-term bridge contract would make more sense for both sides, allowing for more time for him to make his case for a higher spot on the depth chart and improve his production. The price tag for that type of deal should check in around the $3.5MM mark.
D Olen Zellweger – There are some parallels to Mintyukov here. While he wasn’t a lottery pick, he was still a prolific producer in junior who has yet to establish himself offensively in the NHL and even spent a lot of time in the playoffs as a healthy scratch. Zellweger had 22 points in 76 games this season but saw his ATOI drop by nearly two minutes a night. He could also find himself in trade speculation this summer if Verbeek wants to reshape the back end a bit. Accordingly, a bridge deal makes a lot of sense here too. With Zellweger not having as much of a track record as Mintyukov, a short-term agreement should check in a little lower compared to his counterpart.
Other RFAs: D Jeremie Biakabutuka, G Vyacheslav Buteyets, G Calle Clang, D Tyson Hinds, F/D Ian Moore, F Jan Mysak, F Sasha Pastujov, F Jaxsen Wiebe
Key Unrestricted Free Agents
D John Carlson – The Ducks were the surprising winners of the Carlson sweepstakes, adding him at the trade deadline to aid their playoff run. He wound up averaging nearly a point per game down the stretch at over 24 minutes per night of playing time. The production dipped in the playoffs to six assists in a dozen contests but he again was over the 24-minute mark. While he’s 36, Carlson has shown that he can still be a top-pairing player, at least for now. How quickly the potential drop-off could be will always be a concern for players his age but with the UFA market not being particularly deep, it wouldn’t be shocking to see him land a price tag in the $7MM range while getting two or three years on the contract. With demand for right-shot impact blueliners set to be quite high, he’s in great shape heading to free agency.
D Radko Gudas – The three-year deal he received in 2023 ultimately worked out pretty well for both sides. Gudas got to play a more prominent role than he was accustomed to early although he slowed down a fair bit this year and was banged up at the end of the season. It’s certainly possible that Anaheim could look to bring back their captain but it would have to be with the understanding that he’d be more of a sixth defender moving forward. Turning 36 next month with his rugged style of play, he’ll be a little more hard-pressed to command a multi-year deal although he is eligible for incentives in a one-year pact. After making $4MM per season on this last contract, there’s a good chance that ticks down by at least a million this summer.
D Jacob Trouba – Acquired in a cap-clearing move from the Rangers last season, the change of scenery worked out nicely for the veteran, especially this year. Head coach Joel Quenneville elevated Trouba’s role and he made the most of it, putting up his best offensive numbers since the 2021-22 campaign while the last time he played more than his 22:30 ATOI was back when he was in Winnipeg. Now, was this a late-career resurgence or a one-time blip? That’s a key question heading into free agency but again, given the limited right-shot impact options available, teams are likely to be offering contracts that suggest they believe this year is repeatable. The 32-year-old probably won’t hit the $8MM mark again but something in the $6MM to $7MM range on a multi-year pact could very well happen.
F Jeffrey Viel – Score one for stick-to-itiveness. A regular in the minors until this season, Viel got a chance to play more regularly following an early-season trade from Boston. The 29-year-old got to play above the fourth line at times, a rarity for someone who was basically on the roster in case a fight was needed. He then impressed in the playoffs with four points in 12 games while still averaging more than four hits per game. It’s unlikely that he’s going to command a huge deal this summer but doubling his $775K current price tag isn’t unfathomable either. At a minimum, he should have much more financial stability after bouncing around on two-way pacts for a lot of his pro career.
Other UFAs: F Jansen Harkins, F Ross Johnston, G Petr Mrazek
Projected Cap Space
The Ducks enter the offseason with a little over $40MM in cap space. Their RFA class should easily take up more than half of that number, assuming that they can work out long-term agreements with Carlsson and Gauthier. Beyond that, they will have a fair bit of flexibility to work with although Verbeek will be dealing with re-signing or replacing the right side of his back end. When all is said and done spending-wise, they may not be too far off the Upper Limit.
Photos courtesy of John Jones (Carlsson) and Perry Nelson (Carlson)-Imagn Images. Contract information courtesy of PuckPedia.
Senators Eyeing External Backup Goaltender Acquisition
While free agency is still more than a month away, that isn’t stopping teams from starting to put together their offseason wish lists. To that end, an upgrade at the backup goalie position is an obvious item for the Senators. Leevi Merilainen (a pending restricted free agent) struggled mightily early on in the season and while James Reimer (a pending unrestricted free agent) was a serviceable midseason replacement, they should be setting their sights higher heading into the summer.
With that in mind, Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch relays that one of the netminders they’re expected to consider is pending UFA goaltender Stuart Skinner. He added that there is a belief that the veteran will be one of their top targets in free agency, especially with the expectation that he won’t return to Pittsburgh.
Skinner had established himself as the starting goaltender for several years, at least for most of that stretch. He was surpassed at times when he struggled but found his way back before long to the number one role. The 27-year-old helped lead the Oilers to back-to-back Stanley Cup Final appearances, although they lost both times.
Edmonton opted to keep their goalie tandem intact from last spring, a decision that ultimately didn’t work out. Skinner was inconsistent to start the season and was ultimately moved to Pittsburgh with the hopes that Tristan Jarry would be an upgrade. (That wound up not being the case.) Meanwhile, following the swap, he held his own in the back half of the year with the Penguins, posting a 2.99 GAA with a .885 SV% in 27 starts and played the first three games of their first-round loss to Philadelphia.
Skinner certainly isn’t going to be entering the UFA market as a sure-fire starting goaltender but the fact he has logged starter’s minutes would be appealing to a team like Ottawa. While the Sens have a number one in Linus Ullmark, he has never played 50 games in a season before. That makes getting someone capable of making 30-plus starts more important so Skinner would fit the bill.
It appears Ottawa GM Steve Staios isn’t just considering free agent options, however. ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reports (Twitter link) that Sabres goaltender Devon Levi is a name of interest for the Senators.
Levi was once viewed as Buffalo’s goalie of the future, especially after a strong showing in college and a 2023 debut that nearly led the Sabres to a playoff spot. But things haven’t gone well since then with the team ultimately deciding the following two years that more time in the minors would be beneficial. Coming into this season, the 24-year-old had a 3.29 GAA and a .894 SV% in 39 career NHL appearances.
He didn’t add to those totals in 2025-26. In his final year of waiver exemption, Levi played exclusively with AHL Rochester, posting a 2.83 GAA and a .904 SV% in 52 games. The 24-year-old is signed for next season already with his $812.5K AAV checking in below the minimum salary which will make him appealing.
With Buffalo already having Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Alex Lyon, and Colten Ellis all under contract, there really isn’t room for Levi on the NHL roster next season. And if they believe that they won’t be able to get Levi through waivers, looking to move him for some value in the coming weeks makes sense for them.
Levi would certainly represent a riskier pickup for Ottawa, however. They hoped that they had a young goalie ready for the role in Merilainen this season but that didn’t work out. Levi is only eight months older and while he has a bit more of a track record, he has yet to make it through a full NHL season yet. There would be some upside for sure but the risk would be higher as well.
Staios will undoubtedly have other external pickups on his wish list heading into the annual offseason carousel of backups. These are two of the younger players who could be in play; it will be interesting to see if they’ll consider some older shorter-term options as well or if their preference will be to aim for someone who could be in that spot for a few years.
Prospect Notes: Frondell, Flames, Stars
Blackhawks prospect Anton Frondell was injured in Sweden’s game against Italy on Friday, notes Hockeysverige’s Andreas Larsson. With around six minutes left, he was bumped into a partially open door at the bench and ultimately did not return. His availability for their game today against Norway is uncertain. Frondell made quite the impression when he got to the NHL back in March, putting up nine points in 12 games down the stretch and appears poised to be a Calder Trophy contender next season. The 19-year-old has two assists in two games so far at the Worlds while averaging just under 14 minutes per game of ice time.
Other prospect news from around the hockey world:
- This season, the Flames signed multiple college prospects late in the year and that might be the plan next season as well. Flames Nation’s Ryan Pyke mentions (Twitter link) that forwards Cole Reschny, Cullen Potter, and Ethan Wyttenbach are all candidates to sign late in the season; accordingly, Calgary will need to leave ample room on the 50-contract limit and factor that into their offseason planning. Reschny and Potter were first-round picks last season while Wyttenbach, a fifth-round selection, was a Hobey Baker Award finalist in his first NCAA campaign.
- The Stars have invited undrafted forward Justin Larose to their upcoming development camp, notes Mark Divver of the New England Hockey Journal (Twitter link). The 21-year-old wrapped up his junior career with QMJHL Newfoundland this season, potting 32 goals and 56 assists in 64 games while adding nine more in 12 playoff contests. He has already committed to play for the University of Michigan next season although a strong showing in camp could plausibly earn Larose an entry-level deal to change his plans.