Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Golden Knights Looking To Trade Ben Hutton

at CDT | by 8 Comments

While the Golden Knights will be without Alex Pietrangelo moving forward, it appears that another defender could be on the move as well.  David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports that Vegas is trying to move defenseman Ben Hutton.

The 32-year-old has spent the last four seasons with Vegas after signing with them as a depth option early in the 2021-22 season.  After that first year, he has signed a pair of two-year contracts with his current deal having one year left at an affordable price tag of $975K.

Unfortunately for Hutton, his role last season saw him become a sparingly used depth piece.  While he did miss 16 games with an upper-body injury, he was a healthy scratch in 55 others as he played in just 11 games during the regular season.  He had a pair of assists in those outings along with 19 blocks in a little over 13 minutes of ice time per game.  Hutton also didn’t see any action in the playoffs.

For his career, Hutton has played in 520 career NHL games with five different teams, spanning over parts of ten seasons.  The bulk of that came with Vancouver when he was used in a top-four role for good chunks of the four years he spent with them.  He has 124 points and 670 blocks in those outings with an ATOI of over 18 minutes per game, largely skewed from his time with the Canucks.  Over his four seasons in Vegas, Hutton has averaged 15:38 per game, more reflective of the sixth defender role he has held when he has been in the lineup.

As things stand, Hutton figures to be the seventh defenseman once again for the Golden Knights heading into next season so it appears that Vegas is trying to find a new team that could give him a better opportunity.  But there are several blueliners still in free agency that could conceivably take away some potential landing spots for Hutton in the coming weeks so it wouldn’t be surprising if he ultimately makes it to training camp still with Vegas.

At the moment, the Golden Knights are about $6.8MM over the cap, per PuckPedia.  That amount includes Pietrangelo’s $8.8MM cap charge which will land on LTIR, meaning that they have around $2MM of flexibility to work with.  Moving Hutton and replacing him with a player at the league minimum would only add $200K of extra room but every bit of cap wiggle room would help.  Now, the only question is whether a team is willing to trade for Hutton or if he ultimately lands on waivers in the fall if they can’t find a trade for him and want to create that small increase in cap space.

Kraken Re-Sign Tye Kartye

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Kraken have re-signed a key depth forward.  The team announced that they’ve inked winger Tye Kartye to a two-year contract worth $1.25MM per season.  He would have been eligible to file for arbitration by today’s 4:00 PM CT deadline.

The 24-year-old signed with Seattle as an undrafted free agent back in 2022, a move that has worked out well for both sides.  Kartye played his junior hockey with the OHL’s Soo Greyhounds and a 45-goal, 79-point campaign in 2021-22 was enough for the Kraken to give him an entry-level deal.

In the first season of that contract, Kartye played exclusively with AHL Coachella Valley during the regular season where he notched an impressive 28 goals and 29 assists in 72 games.  That was enough to earn him a recall to the Kraken for the playoffs where Kartye was an important secondary contributor, picking up five points in ten outings with Seattle along with 44 hits in his first taste of NHL action.  He was then returned to the Firebirds for their postseason run, adding eight points in 18 appearances.

His playoff showing was enough to make Kartye an NHL regular since then.  In 2023-24, he got into 77 games with the Kraken, tallying 11 goals and nine assists while he threw a team-high 229 hits in just under 12 minutes per game of playing time.  However, offense was a little harder to come by last season as he managed just six goals and seven helpers in 63 outings while his ice time dropped below ten minutes per night.

With that drop in production and playing time, it’s not a surprise that both sides opted for a short-term bridge deal.  Kartye will still be an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent when this contract expires although 2027 will be his final summer of RFA eligibility.

Seattle still has some work to do on the RFA front as winger Kaapo Kakko and defenseman Ryker Evans need new contracts.  Kakko is arbitration-eligible while Evans isn’t eligible to file this summer.

Blue Jackets Re-Sign Dmitri Voronkov

at CDT | by 3 Comments

The Blue Jackets have taken care of their top remaining restricted free agent, announcing that they’ve re-signed forward Dmitri Voronkov to a two-year contract.  The deal carries a $4.175MM cap charge.  He was eligible to file for salary arbitration by today’s 4:00 PM CT deadline.  GM Don Waddell had the following to say about the signing:

We are very pleased to reach this agreement with Dmitri as he is an important part of our young core. He has size, strength and excellent hands and has a chance to be a very special player. We look forward to his continued growth and development as a Blue Jacket.

The 24-year-old was a fourth-round pick by Columbus back in 2019, going 114th overall.  While Voronkov showed some promise with Ak Bars Kazan of the AHL, the Blue Jackets had to wait a while to get him as he spent four more years in their system after being drafted before making the jump to North America in 2023.

Voronkov had a slow start to his rookie season in 2023-24 but adapted well as the season went on.  He spent a good chunk of that year playing center and did relatively well offensively in a secondary role, tallying 18 goals along with 16 assists and 55 penalty minutes in 75 games despite averaging just 13:27 per night.

His performance gave the Blue Jackets enough confidence to move him into more of a regular top-six role last season.  However, with the addition of Sean Monahan and the decision to move Adam Fantilli back down the middle, Voronkov was predominantly on the wing in 2024-25.  He played in 73 games for Columbus in 2024-25, tallying 23 goals along with 24 assists while his playing time jumped up to nearly 17 minutes per game.

Voronkov found himself in trade speculation last month when the Blue Jackets were showing interest in defenseman Noah Dobson.  It’s believed that Voronkov was the forward that New York was coveting as part of the package for the blueliner, who ultimately went to Montreal.

With the signing, Voronkov becomes the third highest-paid forward on the Blue Jackets for the upcoming season, joining Monahan and center Charlie Coyle, who was acquired from Colorado last month.  The deal buys both sides more time to assess if Voronkov has another level to get to offensively, one that could push him toward a significantly higher pay day in 2027 when the salary cap could be closer to the $113MM mark.  When the contract expires, Voronkov will still have one RFA-eligible season left with arbitration eligibility.

With the signing, Columbus has two remaining restricted free agents to re-sign, defenseman Daemon Hunt and winger Mikael Pyyhtia.  Neither player is eligible for arbitration this summer.

Photo courtesy of Jerome Miron-Imagn Images.

Capitals Notes: Milano, Free Agency, McMichael, Goaltending

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

After missing all but three games due to an upper-body injury sustained in November, it appears that Capitals winger Sonny Milano will be good to go for training camp.  Speaking with reporters today at the end of development camp (video link), GM Chris Patrick indicated that the veteran is now ready to start going through his normal offseason regimen and that he is expected to participate in training camp.  This comes six weeks after Patrick wasn’t sure if Milano would be available to start next season.  Milano had 15 goals in 49 games back in 2023-24 and could be a useful depth scorer heading into 2025-26.  He has one year left on his contract with a $1.9MM cap charge.

More notes from Patrick’s presser:

  • While declining to say who he went after, Patrick noted that he tried to do something big to add to their roster but that it didn’t come to fruition. It doesn’t appear to be related to a lower offer than the player was looking for either, as Patrick said that “It didn’t come down to the money or the offer or the term or any of that. It was a player picking what he thought was the best situation both on and off the ice.”  There was speculation that the Capitals were one of the finalists for winger Nikolaj Ehlers who ultimately accepted a six-year, $51MM contract with Carolina while Washington brought back Anthony Beauvillier on a two-year, $5.5MM pact soon after.  In the meantime, he wouldn’t rule out signing another free agent but noted that there are some prospects who could make a push for a roster spot as well.
  • After spending most of last season on the wing, Patrick suggested that Connor McMichael could get another opportunity to line up at center next season. The 24-year-old is a natural center but with Dylan Strome and Pierre-Luc Dubois on the top two lines, the decision was made to put McMichael on the wing over playing him on the third line.  It’s unclear if Patrick’s suggestion means that they’ll try that this season or if one of the other two will start on the wing to see how McMichael fares down the middle in the top six.  Speculatively, it feels like something they’ll experiment with in training camp.  Entering the final year of his contract, McMichael’s value would be higher next summer if he’s able to stay at center for the full season.
  • While AHL Hershey starter Hunter Shepard departed in free agency (signing with Ottawa), Patrick indicated that they won’t be bringing in a replacement for him to take over as the starter. Instead, Clay Stevenson will get that role moving forward.  Stevenson posted a 2.94 GAA and a .888 SV% in 33 outings with the Bears in 2024-25.  At the moment, he would partner with Garin Bjorklund, Mitch Gibson, or prospect Antoine Keller, who is under contract with Hershey but has yet to sign with Washington.

Canucks Have Started Extension Talks With Kiefer Sherwood

at CDT | by 8 Comments

Last summer, Vancouver’s signing of winger Kiefer Sherwood drew little fanfare.  After all, he was a fourth-line signing on the opening day of free agency where over 100 contracts were handed out, so, like many, he was a bit of an afterthought.

But that all changed fairly quickly as the 30-year-old wound up playing his way higher up the depth chart while having a career year.  Entering the second and final season of the two-year, $3MM contract he signed last summer, Sherwood is now extension-eligible.  In a recent appearance on Sportsnet 650 (audio link), GM Patrik Allvin indicated that he has had preliminary discussions about a contract extension with Sherwood’s camp.

Sherwood has only been an NHL regular for the last two seasons.  In 2023-24, he secured a full-time spot on Nashville’s roster and put up 27 points while playing exclusively in their bottom six where he notched 234 hits.  That helped secure him a seven-figure contract last summer for the first time.

Last season, Sherwood certainly improved on those numbers.  In 78 games, he potted 19 goals and 21 assists while seeing his playing time jump up to nearly 15 minutes a night, all career highs.  Meanwhile, on the physicality side, not only did he shatter his personal best in that regard but he also set a new NHL record in the category with 462.  The previous record was set by Nashville’s Jeremy Lauzon in 2023-24 with 383; he was traded to Vegas late last month.

Given what is still a fairly limited track record, forecasting an extension becomes a little tricky.  At first glance, the four-year, $12MM contract given to Dakota Joshua last summer seems like a reasonable approximation.  While the salary cap is higher now, Joshua is a little younger and plays center, the more premium position which could arguably offset the cap increase to a degree.  His camp could plausibly argue that the five-year, $17MM pact Boston gave to Tanner Jeannot would be fair.  Meanwhile, AFP Analytics projects a three-year pact around $2.65M per season.  Regardless, Sherwood is well-positioned for a raise and a longer-term agreement than he’s ever had.

The Canucks have been active on the extension front already this week.  First, the team inked goaltender Thatcher Demko to a three-year, $25.MM deal before officially signing winger Conor Garland to a six-year, $36MM pact; both deals kick in for 2026-27.  It appears that if Allvin has his way, Sherwood could be the third player of that group at some point this summer.

Atlantic Notes: Korpisalo, Pradel, AHL Contracts

at CDT | by 2 Comments

After the season, Bruins goaltender Joonas Korpisalo indicated that he wasn’t comfortable with his playing time which was limited to just 27 games.  However, his agent Markus Lehto confirmed to RG’s Jimmy Murphy that no trade request has been submitted.  The 31-year-old posted a 2.90 GAA and a .893 SV% in 27 games last season and with Boston re-signing Michael DiPietro to a two-year, one-way deal earlier this week, it’s possible that the Bruins will want to give him a look at playing behind Jeremy Swayman next season.  Korpisalo has three years left on a contract that pays him $4MM per season with the Bruins only responsible for paying $3MM per year of that total with Ottawa responsible for the rest.  With a free agent goalie market that’s not particularly strong, it wouldn’t be shocking if teams were kicking the tires to see if the Bruins might move Korpisalo but as of now, the veteran netminder wants to stay.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • Red Wings prospect Michal Pradel is undecided about where he’ll play next season, notes Dennik Sport’s Matej Derak (Twitter link). The goaltender was the 75th pick in last month’s draft and can choose between returning to USHL Tri-City or moving on to WHL Regina.  Pradel had a 2.41 GAA and a .899 SV% in 14 games with Tri-City after joining them in January and at this point, college hockey is not an option as he still has a year of high school remaining.
  • Montreal’s farm team in Laval announced the signings of winger Xavier Simoneau, defensemen Joshua Jacobs and Darick Louis-Jean, and goaltender Hunter Jones to AHL contracts. Simoneau was a sixth-round pick by the Canadiens in 2021 but was non-tendered last month after notching 21 points in 58 games with the Rocket.  Jacobs had five points in 25 games with Laval in 2024-25 while Louis-Jean and Jones played exclusively in the ECHL last season.
  • After non-tendering him last month, the Senators are keeping forward Philippe Daoust in the organization as their farm team in Belleville announced that they’ve signed the forward to a one-year contract. The 23-year-old was a sixth-round pick by Ottawa in 2020 and spent four seasons in Belleville but never earned a chance at the NHL level.  In 52 games with Belleville last season, Daoust had six goals and 12 assists.

Capitals Sign Lynden Lakovic To Entry-Level Contract

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Capitals have wasted little time getting their top pick under contract.  The team announced that they’ve signed winger Lynden Lakovic to a three-year, entry-level deal.  The agreement will pay Lakovic $975K in the NHL and $85K in the AHL per season.  PuckPedia adds (Twitter link) that the contract contains $250K in Class A bonuses in years two and three, pushing the AAV of the deal to $1.14MM.

The 18-year-old was the 27th pick in last month’s draft, slipping that far after being rated in the top 20 by many scouting agencies.

In his first full season at the WHL level in 2023-24, Lakovic didn’t light up the scoresheet but still managed a solid 18 goals and 21 assists in 68 games with Moose Jaw before adding eight points in 20 playoff contests in the Warriors’ run to the Memorial Cup.

Armed with a bigger role last season after several top players moved on, Lakovic led Moose Jaw in scoring despite missing 21 games due to injury.  However, the Warriors struggled mightily, finishing at the bottom of the league standings with just 15 wins.  Still, Lakovic, who took over as team captain late in the season, had 27 goals and 31 assists in 47 games along with just four penalty minutes despite his 6’4 stature.

In Washington’s team release, it noted that the expectation is that Lakovic will return to Moose Jaw for the upcoming season.  Assuming that happens, his contract will ultimately slide and still have three years left on it heading into the 2026-27 campaign.

Hurricanes Sign Mike Reilly

at CDT | by 2 Comments

The Hurricanes made a big splash on the back end with the acquisition of K’Andre Miller today.  They also have added some depth on the back end as PuckPedia reports that Carolina has signed defenseman Mike Reilly to a one-year, $1.1MM contract.  The deal represents a small cut in pay after he made $1.25MM with the Islanders last season.

The 31-year-old was limited to just 18 appearances with New York in 2024-25 but the low number wasn’t performance-related despite notching just two assists.  Reilly suffered a concussion in the first game of November and while recovering from that, it was determined that he needed a procedure on his heart, leaving his availability for the rest of the season in question.  However, he was able to return to the lineup in mid-March, getting into a handful of games down the stretch.

Reilly is a veteran of over 400 career NHL games but has bounced around along the way, never spending more than three years in the same organization.  Overall, he has 18 goals and 106 assists to his name while logging a little more than 17 minutes per game on average.

The Hurricanes will be his fourth team in the last three seasons but the expectations should be the same when he gets in the lineup.  Reilly is typically a player who is capable of providing a bit of depth offense and has five years of at least 16 points under his belt.  The most recent of those came back in 2023-24 when he had six goals and 18 assists in 61 games between the Panthers and Islanders.

It’s likely that Reilly will start the season as Carolina’s reserve defender as it’s widely expected that top prospect Alexander Nikishin will handle a regular role after joining the Hurricanes for the playoffs.  But after the Hurricanes churned through Riley Stillman and Ty Smith through a high amount of recalls and promotions last season, it appears they’ll operate with a full-time seventh option in Reilly who is someone they should be comfortable relying on more frequently than the other two.

Rangers, Will Cuylle Agree To Two-Year Deal

at CDT | by 3 Comments

The Rangers and winger William Cuylle have agreed to terms on a two-year contract worth $3.9MM per season, per Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. Cuylle’s deal is back-loaded to give him a $4.68MM salary and corresponding qualifying offer upon expiry in 2027, per PuckPedia, where he’ll also have salary arbitration rights

Cuylle was a second-round pick by the Rangers back in 2020, going 60th overall and certainly has outperformed his draft stock.  In 2023-24, he cracked New York’s lineup on a full-time basis and while his playing time was limited, he chipped in with 13 goals and eight assists in 81 games while also recording 248 hits.

There was some optimism that he could find another gear offensively heading into last season and Cuylle did just that.  In 82 games, he potted 20 goals and 25 assists, good for a share of fifth in team scoring.  He also saw his playing time jump up by nearly four minutes a game to a little over 15 minutes a night while also notching 301 hits, tied for the third-most in the NHL behind only Kiefer Sherwood (Vancouver) and Mathieu Olivier (Columbus).

Power forwards are hard to come by and coveted by many teams, making Cuylle a speculative offer sheet target, especially with the uncertainty with K’Andre Miller (who has since been traded to Carolina).  While New York created some cap space earlier this offseason with the trade of Chris Kreider to Anaheim, they went and spent that money to lock up Vladislav Gavrikov on a seven-year, $49MM contract that was one of the biggest of the day.

That meant that a long-term pact for Cuylle was out of the question.  Instead, the two sides have settled on a bridge deal that allows New York to stay cap-compliant while setting him up for a better deal two years from now.  With the Upper Limit set to jump to around $113MM by the time this deal expires, Cuylle will be well-positioned for a big raise, assuming he continues to play at the level he did last season.

With the signing and today’s other movement, the Rangers find themselves with a little over $1.4MM in cap space, per PuckPedia, with a full roster.  That gives GM Chris Drury a little wiggle room should the opportunity arrive to upgrade a depth player over the rest of the summer or, alternatively, keeping that space into next season would buy them some flexibility if injuries arise.

Josh Erickson also contributed to this post.

Sabres Re-Sign Ryan Johnson, Jack Rathbone

at CDT | by 1 Comment

July 1: The Sabres confirmed Rathbone’s deal and also announced a three-year, $2.325MM deal for defenseman Ryan Johnson worth $775,000 per season. It’s a two-way contract in 2025-26 and a one-way deal for 2026-27 and 2027-28. The 2019 first-round pick only saw three games of NHL action last season after making 41 appearances in 2023-24, but he did post 13 points and a +13 rating in 66 games with AHL Rochester. Assuming he reaches 80 career NHL games by the time his new deal expires, he’ll be an RFA upon expiry. If not, he’ll be eligible for Group VI UFA status.

June 29: Eligible to test free agency in less than 48 hours as a Group Six unrestricted free agent, defenseman Jack Rathbone has instead decided to re-sign with the Sabres.  PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that Rathbone has signed a two-year deal to remain with Buffalo.  The deal will pay $800K in the NHL, $525K in the minors, and has a guaranteed salary of $550K per season.

The 26-year-old came to the Sabres last summer as a Group Six UFA, inking a one-year, two-way pact that guaranteed him $500K, meaning he gets a small pay bump on this new agreement.  Rathbone didn’t see any action with the Sabres this season but was a regular with AHL Rochester, tallying 23 points in 63 regular season games while adding three assists in eight playoff contests.

Rathbone looked like a legitimate NHL prospect a few years ago.  He held his own in eight games with the Canucks in 2021-22 and notched 40 points in just 39 games with their AHL affiliate in Abbotsford that same season.  However, Rathbone hasn’t been able to come anywhere close to those offensive numbers since then and has now spent time with three different organizations over the last year and a half.

Rathbone shouldn’t be adding to that new team total next season, assuming he once again clears waivers in training camp and starts with Rochester.  Instead, he’ll serve as a valuable experienced player for the Amerks while being a possible recall option should injuries strike during the season in Buffalo.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

scroll to top