Free Agent Stock Watch: Right Wing
With the regular season behind us, player movement between teams is now almost entirely restricted. Teams are in the thick of hotly contested playoff series, and many players with expiring contracts have either concluded their campaigns or are playing crucially important games. The players still in action are playing games that could help determine what magnitude of contract they might receive in the summer.
In a multi-part series, we’ll take a look at each position group of the upcoming free agent class, and do a rundown on how those upcoming unrestricted free agents have performed this year. Which players have increased their odds of scoring a jackpot on the open market? Which players have potentially hurt their earning potential with their play? What are the stakes for these free agents in the playoff games that remain? We’ll break it all down here.
The Marquee Names
Alex Tuch, Buffalo Sabres
As numerous pending free agents have signed extensions to remain with their current team, Tuch has emerged as one of the very best players remaining on the upcoming free agent market. While there is still a chance that the Sabres could come to an agreement with Tuch, who is repped by Brian and Scott Bartlett, the most recent reporting from the regular season indicates there is still a gap in those negotiations.
Unless substantive progress is made in those talks, it appears Tuch, a native of the Central New York region, which is just east of Buffalo, could be playing out his final campaign with the Sabres.
If he does hit the open market, he’d be one of the most in-demand players available. Tuch was a focal point of the Sabres’ return from the Vegas Golden Knights in the Jack Eichel trade, and has blossomed into a legitimate first-line winger for the team. He scored a career-high 36 goals last season and has scored at least 20 goals in each full season he’s played in Buffalo.
He concluded 2025-26 with 33 goals and 66 points in the regular season, and has two goals and two assists in the Sabres’ first three playoff contests.
With the Sabres hoping get past the Boston Bruins and make a deep playoff run, Tuch is in a position where he could author some big moments with the entire league watching.
While Tuch has been in form, there are factors beyond just his play that are contributing to his immense earning potential this summer. Firstly, the number of players who have signed extensions and taken themselves off of the free agent market means Tuch will be one of the few borderline star-level players left on the open market. Secondly, the sharp rise in the salary cap upper limit means there are quite a few teams with cash to burn this summer.
That means more teams will have the financial bandwidth to enter a bidding war for Tuch. The more teams that aggressively pursue an unrestricted free agent, the more money that free agent is often able to make. That bodes well for Tuch.
Patrick Kane, Detroit Red Wings
Like many other aging stars who have already made massive amounts of money in their career, Kane has prioritized on-ice fit and stability over maximizing his earnings in his last few trips to free agency. He found a good fit for himself in Detroit, and the Red Wings would not have come close to ending the league’s longest playoff drought without his efforts.
Now 37 years old, Kane likely has a place in Detroit for as long as he wants to continue playing. His contracts are loaded with performance bonuses, and it’s likely his next deal, in whatever form it takes, will be laden with bonuses as well. While he’s not as tied to Detroit as other similar free agents are to their teams, such as Alex Ovechkin with the Capitals or Jamie Benn with the Stars, it’s tough to imagine Kane entertaining a full free agency process at this stage of his career.
The Solid Contributors
Bobby McMann, Seattle Kraken
NHL history is littered with offensive players who have changed teams mid-season and had slow starts in their new NHL homes. So much of creating offense is about chemistry, and the inherent challenge that faces these players is the fact that they’re entering lineups with teammates whose styles and tendencies are entirely unfamiliar to them.
With that said, some players change teams and find themselves able to hit the ground running despite those inherent challenges; Bobby McMann is one of those players. In his 18 games in Seattle, he scored 10 goals and 14 points, bringing his full-season production to 29 goals, 46 points.
The 29-year-old was dealt from the Maple Leafs as the team could not reach an agreement with him on a contract extension. It was reported that McMann’s asking price on his next deal, said to be over $5MM per year, was a little above where Toronto was willing to go.
Having authored a second consecutive season with at least 20 goals, it appears McMann has given himself a real chance to earn the kind of contract offer Toronto reportedly wasn’t willing to extend him. While he’s not a one-to-one comparable, the fact that Kiefer Sherwood was able to earn a $5.75MM AAV on a five-year term has helped McMann’s case for his next deal. He’s an endearing winger, a player whose hard-working style allowed him to grab hold of an NHL role.
As an undrafted product of Colgate University, which is a quality ECAC program but not one with an overwhelming record of producing NHL players, McMann faced somewhat long odds of becoming an impactful NHL player. But with his compete level, work ethic, and knack for finding the back of the net, McMann managed to beat those odds and become a valuable NHL goal scorer. After making just over $1MM on his last deal, McMann has positioned himself to land a massive pay raise as a free agent this summer.
Vladimir Tarasenko, Minnesota Wild
While Tarasenko’s star has certainly faded since his trade from St. Louis in 2023, he remains a capable NHL scorer and one of the better offensive options set to be available on the open market this summer. He was a mid-season trade addition in back-to-back years, first with the Rangers and then with the Panthers the following year. In Florida, he showed he could still be a valuable player on a contending team, scoring 14 points in 19 regular-season games and chipping in nine points on the Panthers’ run to their first ever Stanley Cup championship.
Fresh off of the championship, Tarasenko signed a two-year, $4.75MM AAV deal with the Detroit Red Wings. But after he only managed 11 goals and 33 points in Detroit, his lowest scoring total in a healthy season of his career, Tarasenko was dealt to the Wild for future considerations. The Red Wings, it appeared, were content to be rid of Tarasenko’s $4.75MM cap hit without needing compensation from the Wild.
That deal has paid dividends for Minnesota, as the Russian forward finished the regular season with 23 goals and 47 points in 75 games. At 34 years old, though, getting term on his next deal could prove difficult. Going on another deep playoff run – provided the Wild can get past the Dallas Stars in the first round – would certainly help position him to potentially get one.
Mats Zuccarello, Minnesota Wild
When the Wild originally signed Zuccarello, back in 2019 during the tenure of former GM Paul Fenton, the deal was largely criticized. Although most outside observers acknowledged Zuccarello was still a quality player, and the $6MM per year price tag was seen as fair, the length of the deal (five years) was met with concern.
ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski wrote at the time that “there’s simply no defendable reason” why the Wild decided to sign Zuccarello for such a long term. The Hockey News’ Ryan Kennedy echoed the sentiment, adding “Zuccarello will eventually wear down and he will still have term on his contract when that happens.”
That concern from the media was not unreasonable, of course, as Zuccarello was into his thirties at that point. But the deal aged fabulously for Minnesota. Fenton’s successor, Bill Guerin, led the team to a quick turnaround, fueled in large part by the arrival of superstar Kirill Kaprizov from the KHL. Zuccarello found instant chemistry with Kaprizov.
After scoring 37 points in his debut campaign in the Twin Cities, Zuccarello managed 35 points in 42 games in 2021-22, Kaprizov’s rookie year.
Since Kaprizov arrived, Zuccarello has enjoyed the best, most productive years of his career even as he’s aged deeper into his thirties. He scored a career-high 79 points in just 70 games in 2021-22, which is a 92-point 82-game scoring pace. He scored 67 points the following year, and managed 63 points (in 69 games) in 2023-24.
His scoring rate has fallen a bit below where it once was as other Wild forwards have emerged as key focal points of the team’s attack (namely 2019 first-rounder Matt Boldy) but has still hovered at a clear top-six rate. This season, Zuccarello scored 15 goals and 54 points in 59 games, his games played total limited by upper-body injuries.
Over the course of his tenure with the Wild, Guerin has shown a willingness to invest in keeping his team’s core intact. His faith in this Wild core has been rewarded this season, without question. Given how well Zuccarello has played, it’d be tough to imagine Guerin letting him walk.
It’s unclear what Zuccarello’s expectations might be in free agency. Assuming he wants to continue his career and play his age-39 season, the fact that Zuccarello is able to be signed with performance bonuses means Minnesota has some flexibility in the route they decide to take with his extension.
Eeli Tolvanen, Seattle Kraken
There are many former top prospects who, after losing their spot on their original team and landing on waivers, have begun a downward spiral in their career. That spiral typically ultimately ends with the player leaving for the European pro ranks or the minor leagues. At one point, Tolvanen appeared to be at risk of following that path.
He was ranked as one of the top prospects in the game in 2018, and broke into the NHL in 2020-21 scoring 11 goals and 22 points in 40 games. But he wasn’t able to build on his rookie season in Nashville, and by late 2022, found himself on the waiver wire. The Kraken, in just their second season in franchise history, placed a claim on Tolvanen. The natural opportunity that comes with playing on an expansion franchise allowed Tolvanen to revive his career trajectory.
While he still isn’t the star he was once projected to be, he has finally begun to deliver some of the offensive upside that had tantalized scouts in years past. He scored 16 goals and 27 points in his first 48 games with the Kraken, and added eight points in 14 playoff games.
That first campaign with the Kraken showed what was to come for Tolvanen. He has become a reliable middle-six goal scorer, hitting a career-high 23 goals last season. This year, he scored 12 goals and 36 points.
Tolvanen has taken steps to round out his game this season, which bodes well for him entering free agency. He didn’t sniff the penalty kill when he began his tenure in Seattle, but is now playing over a minute per game short-handed. In a free agent class short on ascending options, Tolvanen, at 27 years old, will represent a relatively rare commodity.
Oliver Bjorkstrand, Tampa Bay Lightning
For much of his NHL career, Bjorkstrand has been a model of consistency as a second-line scoring forward. The Danish winger has been close to a lock to score at least 20 goals and between 45 and 55 points when healthy, but his fit in Tampa Bay hasn’t been perfect. Despite averaging over three minutes of power play time on ice per game, Bjorkstrand’s production has been below the standard he’s set earlier in his career. Bjorkstrand finished the regular season with 12 goals and 32 points, well below the 21 goals and 46 points he managed last season.
A contributing factor to Bjorkstrand’s decline in production has been his role outside the power play. While he was a top player for Tampa on the man advantage in the regular season, he’s often occupied a bottom-six role at even strength. His 10:30 time on ice per game at even strength is below career bottom-sixers such as Pontus Holmberg and Zemgus Girgensons.
The playoffs have not helped Bjorkstrand’s case. He’s been unable to secure a spot in head coach Jon Cooper’s lineup, serving as a healthy scratch for all three contests thus far. Cooper has even elected to play journeyman Scott Sabourin, who at 33 has played in just 73 career NHL games, over Bjorkstrand.
That puts Bjorkstrand on somewhat shaky ground entering free agency. At 30 years old, he is in a position where he could reasonably get a medium or even long-term deal. But with the way his role has declined in Tampa, he could face a challenge trying to reach his current cap hit, $5.4MM, in free agency.
Morning Notes: Tkachuk, Kero, Schnarr
The offseason has begun earlier than just about everyone in the Ottawa Senators organization had hoped, with the team swept out of the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs last night. With Ottawa’s loss, focus has shifted to the future of the organization – and more specifically, the future of the team’s captain and franchise face: Brady Tkachuk. Sportsnet’s Alex Adams wrote that “next season could even be a last dance of sorts for this core” of Senators players. More specifically, Tkachuk’s “future and the chatter around him will hang over the team until he’s signed to an extension, is traded or walks away from the nation’s capital.”
The 26-year-old is now just two years away from unrestricted free agency, putting a definitive time frame on the Senators’ hopes of competing for a Stanley Cup. As much as Tkachuk struggled to make his mark against Carolina, he remains one of Ottawa’s most important players and a uniquely coveted asset across the league. The team isn’t able to sign Tkachuk to an extension just yet, but once that window opens, every day that passes without his signature will likely only heighten the speculation that he could see his future elsewhere, the way his brother, Matthew Tkachuk, did before being traded from the Calgary Flames to the Florida Panthers. That’s obviously an outcome the Senators will be desperate to avoid, and their planning for this offseason is likely to reflect a level of aggression designed to quickly strengthen the team to show Tkachuk Ottawa is a place where he can win a Stanley Cup.
Other notes from around the hockey world:
- Former Dallas Stars and Chicago Blackhawks forward Tanner Kero will depart the DEL’s Kölner Haie and become a free agent, according to a team announcement. The 134-game NHL veteran has spent the last two seasons playing in Europe, spending 2024-25 with the SHL’s HV71 and this past year with Cologne. He has been solid at each stop, scoring 22 points in 52 games in the SHL and 29 points in 41 games in Germany. He helped Cologne finish in first place in the DEL’s regular season standings but the club fell to Berlin in six games in the league semifinals.
- 2017 Arizona Coyotes third-round pick Nate Schnarr has also decided to depart Cologne and become a free agent after just one year in Germany. The 184-game AHL veteran has spent the last three years playing in Europe, his first two as a top scorer in Finland’s Liiga and this past year as a point-per-game scorer in Germany. He’s proven to be a capable top-six scoring forward in two of Europe’s better leagues, and is likely to receive considerable interest from clubs across the continent this summer.
Transaction Notes: Miller, Okhotyuk, Robins
Montreal Canadiens prospect Quentin Miller transferred from the University of Denver to Western Michigan University a week ago, Brad Elliott Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald reported. He is one of two Canadiens goalie prospects to transfer this week, as 2025 fifth-rounder Alexis Cournoyer left Cornell University to join the Wisconsin Badgers on April 20. Miller, 21, was a fourth-round pick of the Canadiens at the 2023 draft. He won a QMJHL title and Memorial Cup as a backup with the Quebec Ramparts, and has been a tandem goalie at multiple levels for much of his time since being drafted.
Miller went 12-10-2 in 25 games for Denver this season, posting a .916 save percentage and 2.39 goals against average, but lost the No. 1 goalie spot to freshman sensation Johnny Hicks. The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler recently ranked Miller the No. 14 prospect in the Canadiens’ system, writing “The Habs will likely want to see him be the guy somewhere before they commit to signing him.” Miller has a clear lane to being the undisputed No. 1 in Kalamazoo – last year’s starter Hampton Slukynsky has turned pro after two years in college and incoming freshman Owen Lepak hasn’t been a team’s starter since 2023-24, when he led the NAHL’s Maryland Black Bears to the Robertson Cup Final.
Other notes from around the hockey world:
- Former Calgary Flames and New Jersey Devils defenseman Nikita Okhotyuk signed a three-year contract extension in the KHL, keeping him in Russia through May 2029. The Flames still hold Okhotyuk’s signing rights since they qualified him when his last NHL contract expired. The 25-year-old defenseman played in nine games as a Flame and has played in 67 career games at the NHL level, split between Calgary, New Jersey, and San Jose. Over the last two seasons with CSKA Moscow, Okhotyuk has skated in 129 contests and scored 23 points.
- Former San Jose Sharks prospect Tristen Robins plans to sign in North America for 2026-27, according to an official announcement from his former club Rytíři Kladno. Robins was a second-round pick of the Sharks in 2020 and skated in a total of 150 AHL games while a member of the organization. Robins looked to be pushing for an NHL role as recently as 2023, when he scored 38 points in 62 games as an AHL rookie. He earned three NHL games that season and was ranked as the organization’s No. 7 prospect by Scott Wheeler of The Athletic. He wasn’t able to build on that rookie campaign and ended up dealt from the Sharks organization in 2025. Playing on a one-year deal in the Czech league, Robins scored 18 goals and 35 points in 45 games, and will hope to earn another shot in an NHL organization this fall.
Flyers’ Dan Vladar Questionable For Game 4
Philadelphia Flyers starting goaltender Dan Vladar‘s status is in question for game four against the Pittsburgh Penguins, head coach Rick Tocchet told the media today.
According to Kevin Kurz of The Athletic, Vladar “was shaken up” midway through the third period of game three after a collision with Penguins forward Bryan Rust. “He was seen flexing his right arm and hand while trainer Tommy Alva attended to him,” Kurz wrote. Vladar did not skate with the team today, though Tocchet indicated that was more of a maintenance absence than anything else.
Vladar’s status is of immense importance to both sides of the first-round Battle of Pennsylvania, as a healthy Vladar gives the Flyers the best possible chance of closing out a sweep against their arch-rivals on Saturday in game four. The 28-year-old won the Bobby Clarke Trophy as team MVP for his efforts this season, and his .946 save percentage in this series has backstopped Philadelphia to the precipice of a statement series victory. His performance in the regular season, his first campaign as a full-time No. 1, was similarly impressive. He went 29-14-7 with a .906 save percentage and 2.42 goals against average.
If Vladar is unable to dress on Saturday, 26-year-old Samuel Ersson would almost certainly get the start. Ersson was the Flyers’ No. 1 goalie for the last two years before ceding that job to Vladar. He has had his moments, but more often than not has struggled. His .870 save percentage in 33 games this season is the lowest of any goalie with at least 25 games played, and that’s even including a solid run of form he displayed after the Olympic break.
Although Ersson’s numbers have been less than ideal, Tocchet expressed faith in the Swedish netminder, telling the media “I’m not really worried if he had to play. I really wouldn’t. He’s locked in.” Ersson has yet to appear in the Stanley Cup playoffs but does have three postseason starts on record at the AHL level, from 2022-23.
If Ersson does end up getting a start, the elevated stage of the playoffs would provide him with a unique opportunity to put his sub-par regular season numbers behind him. Ersson is set to become an RFA with arbitration rights this summer, and his $1.6MM salary for this season makes him a legitimate non-tender candidate. The chance to impress in playoff hockey – however limited that chance may be – could help Ersson secure an NHL landing spot in case the Flyers do elect to cut him loose.
Jets Assign Prospect Kevin He To AHL
The Winnipeg Jets assigned prospect forward Kevin He to their AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose today.
Manitoba is currently down 1-0 to the Milwaukee Admirals in a best-of-three first-round playoff series. He’s OHL season ended April 16 when his Flint Firebirds were swept by the Windsor Spitfires in the second round of the playoffs. This reassignment gives He the chance to potentially make his professional debut in a do-or-die playoff contest for the Moose.
He, who turns 20 in one week, concluded a second consecutive OHL campaign scoring above the point-per-game mark. He totaled 36 goals and 75 points in 62 games for the Niagara IceDogs in 2024-25, and managed 39 goals and 77 points in 60 games between Niagara and Flint this season. He had served as the IceDogs captain since the start of last season, until his trade to Flint.
While He’s current stint with the Moose may very well not last through the weekend, the bigger test for his future will start next fall. He is set to begin his professional career then, most likely with Manitoba.
The Moose struggled to score for much of this past season, finishing third-to-last in the AHL in total goals scored with 185, the fewest among playoff teams by a wide margin. They ranked No. 31 in the AHL in scoring the year prior, and No. 25 in 2023-24. He, along with other Jets forward prospects, will be tasked with helping to reverse that trend next season.
Snapshots: Bains, Kovalchuk, Klingsell
Vancouver Canucks forward Arshdeep Bains is entering a significant offseason, one that could determine his chances of becoming a full-time NHLer in Vancouver, writes Thomas Drance of The Athletic. According to Drance, “it’s clear” that Bains is “going to have to change his approach to take a stab at becoming a regular.” The 25-year-old entered 2025-26 on a high. He scored 24 points in 24 playoff games en route to a Calder Cup final to cap off the prior campaign, and got a real chance in the NHL to start this season. But he was unable to translate his strong track record of scoring at the AHL level to Vancouver, and finished the season with just five points in 28 games.
Bains will be an arbitration-eligible RFA at the end of next season, and will play the year on a one-way contract with a $775K salary. His qualities in Abbotsford are not really in question – he has scored as high as 55 points in the AHL – it’s his NHL future that is in question. The former WHL star has always been a player more focused on offense, but this year it became clear that Bains faces a tall task trying to translate his scoring from the AHL to the NHL. To find a way to carve out a long-term NHL role, as Drance wrote, Bains might need to redouble his efforts to provide value in other areas of the game, such as growing his defensive game or even adding some sandpaper to his style. Numerous players have found success turning themselves into valuable bottom-six defensive role players at the NHL level after being top scorers at lower levels (Dallas Stars forward Sam Steel is a great example) and it’s possible that’s the role Bains will have to take to stick at the game’s highest level.
Other notes from around the hockey world:
- Three-time NHL All-Star and 2004 Rocket Richard Trophy winner Ilya Kovalchuk was named president of the KHL’s Shanghai Dragons yesterday, according to a team announcement. The team also named Evgeny Artukhin as its general manager. Artukhin has spent the last three seasons as a European scout with the Vegas Golden Knights. Kovalchuk does have some prior management experience, as he served as GM of the Russian Olympic Committee men’s hockey team for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. The Dragons endured a very difficult 2025-26 season, going 21-35-12 and failing to reach the postseason. The club’s playoff drought is now up to nine years, as they have qualified only once in the team’s ten-year history – their debut year in the KHL.
- Winnipeg Jets prospect Viktor Klingsell signed a two-year rookie contract with the SHL’s Skelleftea AIK, according to a team announcement. In addition, the team announced that Klingsell will spend next season on loan in Sweden’s second division, HockeyAllsvenskan, with Kalmar HC. The 19-year-old was selected in the fifth round by the Jets at the 2025 draft and proved himself ready for pro hockey in 2025-26. He scored 17 goals and 43 points in 25 games at the U20 Nationell level, and seven points in eight games on loan with Östersunds IK in HockeyAllsvenskan. That’s the level he’ll get to start the year at in the fall.
Latest On Charlie Coyle Contract Talks
As the 2025-26 season progressed, more and more pending unrestricted free agents signed contract extensions to remain with their current teams. A free agent market that was once slated to feature big names such as Connor McDavid and Kirill Kaprizov has thinned out to a considerable degree, simultaneously hurting teams with big spending plans and helping the players who remain without a contract. One of the players who appears set to benefit most is Columbus Blue Jackets pivot Charlie Coyle.
Coyle, 34, is a pending UFA coming off of an extremely strong platform season. He’s set to be one of the top players available overall, and plays a premium position (center.) While his age might give some teams pause, he’s expected to receive significant interest on July 1 if he makes it until then without a new contract.
Yesterday, The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline reported that the Blue Jackets are determined to not let things reach that point. According to Portzline, a potential Coyle extension “is an immensely important contract for the Blue Jackets, such that Coyle could be seen as having a blank check to set his terms.”
On one hand, it’s not too difficult to see why Columbus would be desperate to extend Coyle. For much of Columbus’ franchise history, the team has battled a talent deficiency at the center position.
The Blue Jackets have been searching for a true No. 1 center for most of their existence in the NHL, and could very well have found one in Adam Fantilli. But Fantilli is still developing into that role, and the team’s No. 2 center, Sean Monahan, played through injury this season and was limited to just 13 goals and 36 points in 78 games. That’s a steep decline from his production last season, when he scored 19 goals and 57 points in 54 games. Monahan’s down season only further underscored Coyle’s importance to Columbus’ lineup.
Keeping Coyle would ensure the center position remains an area of strength in the Blue Jackets’ lineup. Part of why it may be seen as essential to team management is the fact that Columbus is under substantial pressure to reach the playoffs. They have very narrowly missed out on playoff hockey in each of the last two seasons, doing so in dramatic fashion this year.
The Blue Jackets have not made the playoffs since 2019-20, when they defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs in a qualifying-round series. The club cannot afford to take a step backward or hurt their odds of competing next season, and most would argue that losing Coyle on the open market would be doing so.
With that said, on the other hand, it’s also fair to question whether investing in Coyle would be in the team’s best long-term interests. If Columbus do indeed feel backed into a corner with Coyle, as Portzline suggested, that’s not exactly an ideal position to negotiate from.
The team’s immense interest in keeping Coyle, combined with the anticipated heavy interest in his services from across the league, gives him a massive amount of leverage in talks with the Blue Jackets. Coyle spoke highly of his time in Columbus, but it still is likely to cost quite a bit to keep him from testing the open market.
Is paying top dollar for a talented veteran center the best move for the Blue Jackets to make if the goal is building a sustainable contender? That’s the question team management will have to answer over the next few months as it considers whether to extend Coyle.
Injury Notes: Oilers, Lightning, Wild
Edmonton Oilers center Jason Dickinson is questionable for game two tonight against the Anaheim Ducks as the result of an undisclosed injury, reports Jason Gregor of Sports 1440. Per Gregor, veteran Curtis Lazar will enter head coach Kris Knoblauch’s lineup if Dickinson can’t dress. Dickinson has had some trouble staying healthy in recent weeks, as he missed the final three games of Edmonton’s regular season schedule with a lower-body injury. That didn’t stop him from making a major impact in game one, as he scored two goals in Edmonton’s 4-3 victory over the Ducks.
The 30-year-old veteran was acquired by the Oilers at the trade deadline from the Chicago Blackhawks, and is a well-respected bottom-six center thanks to his defensive ability. Lazar, 31, is also a bottom-six defensive center, though he is not held in quite as high a regard as the player he may replace in the lineup. Lazar got into 45 games for Edmonton this season, averaging 8:55 time on ice per game, including 0:33 per game on the penalty kill. Dickinson has been Edmonton’s top penalty-killing forward since he was acquired, averaging a team-high 1:51 time on ice per game while short handed.
Other injury updates from around the NHL:
- Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper updated the media on the status of the team’s injured players before the team’s flight to Montreal today, telling team reporter Gabby Shirley that forward Pontus Holmberg is still out on a week-to-week basis, and “definitely” won’t be able to return within the timeframe of the team’s series against the Canadiens. He also said defenseman Charle-Edouard D’Astous is “progressing” in his recovery from the injury he suffered from game one, and will skate while the team is on the road. He also added that injured captain Victor Hedman is traveling with the team, but there is no firm timeline on his return.
- Minnesota Wild forwards Mats Zuccarello and Yakov Trenin will be game-time decisions in advance of game three tonight against the Dallas Stars, reports Michael Russo of The Athletic. According to Russo, if one of the pair is unable to play, Nico Sturm will draw into the lineup in their place. Zuccarello played game one against the Stars but missed game two with an upper-body injury. He’s one of the Wild’s top offensive players when healthy, having scored 54 points in 59 games this season. Trenin is managing an upper-body injury, and could be at risk of missing a game this season for the first time.
Sharks Loan Leo Sahlin Wallenius To AHL
The Sharks announced that they have loaned Leo Sahlin Wallenius to their AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda. The move allows the Sharks prospect to continue his 2025-26 season now that his campaign in Sweden has concluded.
The Barracuda have a best-of-three first-round playoff series against the Henderson Silver Knights coming up, but it’s unclear if Sahlin Wallenius will be included in head coach John McCarthy’s lineup for game one. At the very least, the 2024 second-rounder will now be an option at his disposal.
If Sahlin Wallenius does get into McCarthy’s playoff lineup, his first game would be his North American professional debut. The 20-year-old spent all of 2025-26 at the professional level in his native Sweden, skating in 32 games for the SHL’s Växjö Lakers.
He had a successful season, scoring 13 points in the regular season and six points in 10 playoff games. He was also one of Sweden’s very best defensemen at this season’s World Junior Championships, scoring six points in seven games while regularly logging heavy minutes for the Swedes.
After a 2024-25 season that saw Sahlin Wallenius split his time between four different levels of hockey (SHL, Liiga, Allsvenskan, J20 Nationell), the level of consistency afforded to Sahlin Wallenius this season allowed him to take a real step forward in his development.
With his ELC signed last year, focus should be quickly shifting to when he might turn his attention to North America and the Sharks organization. Sahlin Wallenius’s contract status in the SHL is actually relevant for his developmental future and whether he might be able to stay in the AHL next season, in the (likely) event he doesn’t break camp on the NHL roster.
The NHL-SHL transfer agreement stipulates that any player who is under the age of 24, not drafted in the first round, and also under contract in the SHL be assigned back to Sweden rather than be sent to the AHL.
The fact that Sahlin Wallenius’ deal in the SHL is set to expire, and there has been no word about an extension, paves the way for him to be able to develop in the AHL. There are many cases of Swedish prospects doing so, such as Montreal Canadiens rearguard Adam Engstrom, who has been able to play for the AHL’s Laval Rocket in his age-21 and age-22 campaigns.
Regardless of where exactly he plays, this is a player who appears to have a bright future who is now set to dip his toes into the North American game. He was recently ranked as the No. 9 prospect in the Sharks’ system by Scott Wheeler of The Athletic, who wrote that the defenseman “projects as a two-way skating third-pairing NHL D.”
As the Sharks continue to figure out who the building blocks on their blueline are, Sahlin Wallenius could be a name to watch on the Barracuda.
Pacific Notes: Warsofsky, Flames, Lewandowski
The San Jose Sharks took a step forward in 2025-26, upping their points total from a league-worst 52 to 86 this season, just four points short of a Western Conference playoff spot. Sharks GM Mike Grier gave Warsofsky a vote of confidence in his end-of-season media availability. Per The Mercury News’ Curtis Pashelka, Grier said Warsofsky has “done a good job” and added that “there’s no reason to think that he won’t be the coach [in San Jose] when the season starts next year.”
While the Sharks parting ways with Warsofsky seems somewhat out of question given the team’s dramatic year-over-year improvements, the reality is this past NHL season has been marked by teams pulling the trigger on coaching changes in non-traditional situations. The Vegas Golden Knights fired Stanley Cup-winning head coach Bruce Cassidy with less than a month remaining in the season, while the New York Islanders fired head coach Patrick Roy with just four games remaining in 2025-26. NHL teams hold their coaches to extremely high standards, though it is important to note that the Sharks are in an entirely different stage of their competitive cycle than Vegas is, for example. But with the emergence of key contributors in San Jose such as star Macklin Celebrini, the competitive bar has been raised, and it’s up to Warsofsky to meet that bar next season.
Other notes from around the Pacific Division:
- The Calgary Flames enter the offseason committed to a long-term, patient vision in constructing their team, according to what GM Craig Conroy said to the media on Friday. Conroy was asked about what kind of teambuilding direction he’d take moving forward, and said “It is about the long term. It’s not about getting into the playoffs one year, not in the next, in one year, then out. We want to be there consistently.” Calgary has missed the playoffs for four straight years, and appear to have a substantial amount of work ahead of them when it comes to building the club into a true Stanley Cup contender. Based on what Conroy told the media, it appears the team will embark on a patient, draft-and-develop road back to contention, rather than trying to move aggressively in free agency or in trades to add NHL-ready talent to their roster.
- The Edmonton Oilers signed prospect forward David Lewandowski has joined the team’s AHL affiliate, the Bakersfield Condors, on an ATO. The 19-year-old made his North American professional debut last night against the San Jose Barracuda and earned his first AHL point, a secondary assist. The 19-year-old German forward was selected in the fourth round, No. 117 overall, of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft. The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler ranked Lewandowski as the No. 5 prospect in Edmonton’s system, calling him a “a reliable, almost veteran player, even though he’s still a teenager.” Lewandowski spent most of 2025-26 with the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades, where he scored 65 points in 57 regular-season games and nine points in 11 postseason contests.