Sabres Sign Jack Quinn To Two-Year Extension
5:50 p.m.: Quinn’s deal will pay him $3.25MM in 2025-26 and $3.5MM in 2026-27 – all in base salary, according to PuckPedia. That means he has a $3.5MM qualifying offer due in 2027.
4:01 p.m.: The Buffalo Sabres have announced that winger Jack Quinn signed a two-year, $6.75MM extension with the club. Quinn was set to become a restricted free agent this summer. His new deal will carry an annual average value of $3.375MM.
Quinn will opt for the short-term bridge deal in his first free agent contract negotiations. He is coming off of his entry-level contract – a three-year, $5.3MM deal signed in the delay prior to the shortened 2021 season. Quinn played through the first 15 AHL games of his career that season and posted a stout nine points. He returned for a full season in the minors in 2021-22 and scored an impressive 26 goals and 61 points in just 45 games. His 1.36 points-per-game that season ranked third among AHLers with more than 15 games played, and earned Quinn the AHL Red Garrett Memorial ‘Rookie of the Year’ Award.
The Sabres granted Quinn his NHL rookie season on the heels of his AHL breakout, and his impactful presence quickly translated. He scored 14 goals and 37 points in 75 games of the 2022-23 season, seventh-most among rookies that season. It was a hardy rookie year that ended with Quinn earning routine looks in Buffalo’s top-six. But his encore performance in 2023-24 failed to continue his hot run. Instead, he didn’t make his season debut until January after suffering an Achilles tendon injury that required surgery during the off-season. He scored a promising 19 points in 27 games – a 57-point pace across 82 games – when he did return, but the injury still left fans questioning.
Quinn bounced back to form and good health this season, but didn’t find the breakout some fans expected. He scored 15 goals and 39 points in 74 games – good for a new career-high but well short of the 50-point upside he flashed during his injured year. The fluctuation will likely earn Quinn a short-term bet on his next contract. He’ll now have a chance to prove his goal-scoring upside at the NHL level and earn a hardy payday in 2027 because of it. If he can’t, the Sabres will have an opportunity to get out from under a player who’s already borne through multiple injuries in his hockey career. Quinn is among the highest upside bets on the Sabres roster and boasts an impressive 97 points in 178 career games at the age of 23. He’ll be a player to watch closely on his new deal.
Panthers Sign Sam Bennett To Eight-Year Extension
The Florida Panthers have signed reigning Conn Smythe Trophy winner Sam Bennett to an eight-year, $64MM contract extension, per Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press. The move was later confirmed by the Panthers. It will carry an annual-average-value of $8MM and carry Bennett through his age-37 season. The contract will also carry a no-movement clause through the first five years, and a no-trade clause through the final three years, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
After a postseason full of speculation as to where he’d land next, Bennett will stand by his word and re-sign with the Panthers. The deal clocks in at a cheaper price than many speculated he could receive on the open market, especially after leading the playoffs with 15 goals in 23 games. No other player scored more than 11 goals. Bennett was ferocious through every single game in Florida’s run to a second consecutive Stanley Cup win. Serving as the team’s top-line left-wing, Bennett earned 22 points in summer hockey, with many coming on the back of relentless play around the opponent’s net.
The postseason performance was the culmination of what many knew Bennett was capable of. He’s long served as an imposing, aggressive presence in the offensive end – capable of racking up just as many penalty minutes as he does points. He scored 14 points in 19 games of Florida’s Stanley Cup win last season, after netting 41 points and 100 penalty minutes during the regular season. That marked Bennett’s third-straight season reaching at least 40 points – a streak he maintained this season by posting a career-high 51 points in 76 games. He added 90 penalty minutes and a minus-15 to that stat line.
Bennett has now scored 20 goals and 40 points in three of the last four seasons. His only miss – the 2022-23 campaign – saw him net 16 goals and 40 points in just 63 games. He’s proven incredibly reliable ever since joining the Panthers via trade in the 2020-21 season. Florida acquired him from the Calgary Flames in exchange for Emil Heineman and a second-round pick ultimately used by Seattle to select David Goyette. Heineman was traded earlier today in Montreal’s acquisition of Noah Dobson.
Bennett scored 15 points in his first 10 games with the Panthers following his trade. In the years since, he’s combined for 95 goals and 196 points in 289 games – the fifth most on the Panthers behind Aleksander Barkov (332), Sam Reinhart (324), Carter Verhaeghe (254), and Matthew Tkachuk (254). Bennett has also totaled 59 points in 77 playoff games in Florida, fourth on the team behind Verhaeghe (76), Barkov (74), and Tkachuk (69).
This deal will likely carry Bennett through the end of his career in a Florida Panthers jersey. The Holland Landing, Ontario native originally began his NHL career with the Calgary Flames, who selected him fourth-overall in the 2014 NHL Draft. Bennett played through his rookie NHL season in the 2015-16 campaign and earned a hardy 18 goals and 36 points in 77 games. His stout performance was drowned out by a loaded 2015-16 rookie class – headlined by Artemi Panarin, Jack Eichel, and Connor McDavid. But Bennett showed he could do more than just score with a lofty 75 penalty minutes in 81 games of his sophomore season. With that performance, he fell into the rut of bruising middle-six center in Calgary – a role he would stick in until moving to the Panthers.
Florida has brought out the best of the best in Bennett, and been rewarded two Stanley Cups for their efforts. The 2024-25 season was undoubtedly the best in the 29-year-old’s NHL career – and interestingly ended with him serving as a utility tool more than a set-in center. Florida could expand that role as Bennett enters his 30s, especially with a measly 46.4 faceoff percentage over the last five seasons. Having a Swiss-army-knife locked up for the foreseeable future will be an invaluable piece for the Panthers, as they look to maintain their top-of-the-league presence for as long as possible.
Photo courtesy of Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Blue Jackets Acquire Charlie Coyle, Miles Wood From Avalanche
The Columbus Blue Jackets have acquired forwards Charlie Coyle and Miles Wood from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for top prospect Gavin Brindley, a 2027 second-round pick, and a 2025 third-round pick, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. The deal was first reported by Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. The deal has now been confirmed by Columbus. Colorado will clear out $7.75MM in cap space with this move.
Columbus will land a much-needed second-line center through this move. Coyle started the 2024-25 season with the Boston Bruins, but posted a very quiet 15 goals and 22 points in the 64 games leading up to the Trade Deadline. With a lost season on hand, the Bruins opted to move Coyle to the forward-needy Colorado Avalanche in exchange for centerman Casey Mittelstadt, prospect William Zellers, and a 2025 second-round draft pick. It was a lofty return, but Coyle made it worthwhile with a surge back to scoring heights. He recorded 13 points in 19 games with Colorado – an 82-game pace of 56 points. But Coyle fell surprisingly snake-bitten in the postseason, and managed just one goal in Colorado’s seven playoff games.
Coyle’s surge back to productivity is one Columbus will hope can stick. He was a focal point of the Bruins’ offense during his six full seasons with the club. He had dipped to 28 points in 60 games with the Minnesota Wild prior to a mid-season move to the Bruins. But after a red-hot postseason in Boston – 16 points in 24 games – Coyle found his groove with 16 goals and 37 points in 70 games of his first full year with the Bruins. His scoring took a hit during the shortened 2020-21 campaign, but he climbed back to success with 44 and 45 points in the following two years. He then broke out in a big way during the 2023-24 season, netting a career-high 25 goals and 60 assists in 82 games.
That performance made Coyle’s ice cold start to the 2024-25 season all the more confusing. But even through peaks and valleys on the box score, Coyle has stayed a consistent two-way feature of anywhere he’s landed. He has a bulky 6-foot-3, 215-pound frame and controls movements through both directions of the neutral zone with confidence. That kind of reliable veteran could be invaluable as Columbus looks to build out behind a top line of Kent Johnson, Adam Fantilli, and Kirill Marchenko.
Just as valuable will be the gritty, veteran depth that Colorado adds in the form of Miles Wood. The 29-year-old winger was limited to just 37 games this year due to an upper-body injury. When he did play, he only tallied eight points. That scoring pace falls just short of the 27 and 26 points Wood totaled over the last two seasons, likely a result of an injury slowing him down. Wood’s career-year stands as his 2017-18 campaign with the New Jersey Devils. He scored 19 goals and 32 points in 76 games that year, though Wood’s true impact has always come away from the puck. He’s a bulky, physical forward who’s at his best when causing havoc along the boards or in the corners. He has recorded 182 points, split evenly, and 550 penalty minutes in 513 career games in the NHL. That imposing physical presence will back Columbus’ young top-six well.
But even with the clear-cut roles that Coyle and Wood are headed for, it’s a surprise to see the Blue Jackets move on from Brindley before giving him a consistent chance in the NHL. The team selected the 5-foot-8 winger with the 34th overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, after a standout freshman year at the University of Michigan. Brindley performed even better in his sophomore season, scoring 25 goals and 53 points in only 40 games. His scoring led the Wolverines that season – above players like Rutger McGroarty, Dylan Duke, Seamus Casey, and Frank Nazar.
While he can be called undersized, Brindley is far from outworked. He’s a tireless forechecker, and creates a surprising amount of turnovers and chances deep in the offensive end for a player his size. But, as was to be expected, Brindley struggled to maintain that through his transition to pro leagues. He found his way into bottom-six minutes with the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters this season, while playing through his first professional season. He ended the year with just 17 points, 24 penalty minutes, and a minus-10 through 52 games.
Those numbers – and especially his mere three points through the final 22 games of the season – will set Brindley on a course for the minor leagues again next year. But his upside will be sky-high – and in an Avalanche pool that can pad his size concerns, there could be the makings of a strong depth-winger here. This will be an upside bet for Colorado, and an err towards sure things for the Blue Jackets.
Photo courtesy of Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports.
Canadiens Acquire, Extend Noah Dobson From Islanders
The Montreal Canadiens are set to acquire high-scoring defenseman Noah Dobson from the New York Islanders, per NHL.com’s Kevin Weekes. The deal was later confirmed by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, who shares that the Islanders signed Dobson to a maximum-term, eight-year contract before moving him to Montreal. That extension will carry a total value of $76MM, or an annual average value of $9.5MM.
In return, the Islanders will receive both of Montreal’s draft picks in the 2025 first-round – picks 16 and 17 – as well as forward prospect Emil Heineman, per Friedman.
After multiple days of rumors, Montreal has landed the big fish in high-end scorer Dobson. The move will give Montreal more oomph to an already high-octane offensive group manning their blue-line. Dobson managed a career-year at the age of just 24 during the 2023-24 campaign, when he managed 10 goals and 70 points in 79 games. He became the first Islanders defenseman since Stanley Cup-winner Denis Potvin to reach the 60-assist mark.
That breakout performance was a gradual ramp-up after Dobson managed 13 goals and 51 points in 2021-22, and 13 goals and 49 points in 2022-23. He’s climbed the ranks of offensive output and reached double-digit goals in every full season of his NHL career. That includes reaching 10 goals again this year, though his point total took a surprising tumble to 39 points in 71 games played.
That sudden spike in scoring, and a fall to a minus-16 after posting a plus-12 last year, brought out many skeptics to Dobson’s overall upside. But it’s worth noting that New York scored the fifth-fewest goals in the NHL this season (222), 23 fewer than they managed in Dobson’s breakout campaign in 2024. A bulk of that decrease can be attributed to Islanders’ star forward Mathew Barzal missing all but 30 games of this season, after leading the Islanders in scoring in 2023-24.
Dobson’s scoring totals are near-second-to-none in the league. He ranks fifth among U25 defensemen in total goals scored over the last five seasons (49), behind Cale Makar (104), Rasmus Dahlin (70), Evan Bouchard (54), and Quinn Hughes (51). Dobson also ranks sixth in total points (223) behind Makar (378), Hughes (353), Dahlin (275), Adam Fox (266), and Bouchard (237).
But Dobson’s defensive prowess remains scrutinized. Among the same sample – U25 defenders over the last five years – only seven players have been on the ice for more goals-against than Dobson’s 346. He’s also been on the ice for the eighth-most expected goals-against (xGA; 385.53), per Evolving Hockey. Of the bunch, he boasts the fourth-best goal-differential (+82).
There’s a lot to like, and a lot to be nervous about in how Dobson has blazed his path through his first four full seasons in the NHL. But that argument aside, there seems no denying that he’s among the sheer best, young offensive-defensemen in the NHL. His growth into a star, top-pair role in New York far exceeded the 12th-overall draft spot he earned in the 2018 NHL Draft – and likely exceeds the paths any options at Montreal’s previous 16th and 17th overall slots this year would have yielded. He’s a premier scorer, and will join another emerging superstar on Montreal’s defense in Lane Hutson. Hutson reached the 60-assist mark as a 20-year-old rookie this season, and earned the Calder Trophy because of it.
Both Hutson and Dobson dominate possession on their line – and excel at gaining momentum through their drives in the neutral zone. They’ll be elusive and effective play-drivers, but man need to play off of each other’s pairings to give Montreal the best results. That will be where other young Montreal defenders have a chance to step up – with Kaiden Guhle and David Reinbacher likely the future glue pieces holding the offensive-stars down. How Montreal pursues that deployment, or even if they’ll maintain their current structure at all, will be headlines worth following through the rest of the summer.
Meanwhile Heineman will fall as the unheralded addition to a draft-day blockbuster. The 23-year-old winger played through his rookie NHL season in Montreal’s bottom-six this year. He managed 10 goals and 18 points through 62 games, though looked in need of a spark through multiple points in the year. This move marks the third time that Heineman has been moved by his NHL club – after previously being traded from the Florida Panthers to the Calgary Flames in a 2021 deal that landed Florida Sam Bennett; then from the Flames to the Canadiens in a 2022 trade that sent Tyler Toffoli to Calgary.
Photo courtesy of Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images.
Red Wings Sign William Lagesson To Two-Year Extension
The Detroit Red Wings have signed defenseman William Lagesson to a two-year extension, per a team release. Lagesson spent the bulk of his season serving as the Red Wings’ seventh defenseman watching from the press box. He appeared in just 30 games on the full year: seven in the NHL and 23 in the AHL. He scored one assist in the NHL and nine points in the minor leagues.
Lagesson, 29, has fallen into the rut of a journeyman, depth defenseman over the last four seasons. He was originally a fourth-round draft pick to the Edmonton Oilers in 2014, and made his NHL debut with the club in the 2019-20 campaign. He filled a minimal NHL role through the 2021-22 campaign, ultimately totaling six assists, 22 penalty minutes, and a minus-three through his first 57 NHL games. After splitting much of the 2021-22 campaign split between major and minor leagues, the Oilers opted to send Lagesson and two draft picks – including the pick used to select Lane Hutson – to the Montreal Canadiens in a deal for defenseman Brett Kulak at the 2022 Trade Deadline.
Lagesson entered unrestricted free agency in the following summer, opening the door for him to sign a one-year, league-minimum contract with the Carolina Hurricanes. He spent his full time in the Hurricanes organization with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves, where he managed a career-high 32 points and 46 penalty minutes in 65 games. He re-entered free agency in the following summer and landed with the Toronto Maple Leafs, who returned him to a depth NHL role for the start of the 2023-24 season. He was placed on waivers in March of that season, and claimed by the Anaheim Ducks, who continued his NHL deployment. That pattern repeated itself this last season – with a league-minimum contract signed last summer, and a minimal role in Detroit this season.
A two year contract will be Lagesson’s longest since his three-year, entry-level contract signed in 2017. He may not have made too much of an impact through the 2024-25 season, and may still be looking for his first NHL goal after netting 12 points in 107 career games – but Detroit is clearly confident in his ability to continue serving as a depth defender worth keeping around.
Maple Leafs Sign John Tavares To Four-Year Extension
The Toronto Maple Leafs are in the final stages of signing John Tavares to an extension. The move was first reported by TSN’s Darren Dreger. It was later confirmed by the player on the Instagram page for the John Tavares Foundation — and then by the team themselves. Dreger adds that the deal with be a four-year, $17.52MM extension with an annual average value of $4.38MM.
Tavares’ extension will include $2MM in deferred salary – a practice soon to be outlawed in the NHL’s next collective bargaining agreement, per Chris Johnston of The Athletic. Johnston also shares that Tavares’ deal will carry a no-movement clause through the first two seasons, and a five-team no-trade list in the final two.
Toronto gets an important piece of business accomplished, for a price well under what many Leafs fans expected. The deal is a near-$4MM discount against Tavares’ player value, calculated by The Athletic’s statistician Dom Luszczyscyn. Tavares was coming off of a monstrous, seven-year, $77MM contract signed with Toronto on July 1st, 2018. The deal ate up 13.84 percent of Toronto’s cap-hit at the time, and often served to limit the team’s roster flexibility, alongside lofty deals for Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander.
Now age 34, Tavares will drop his cap hit by nearly two-thirds, and likely ride out the remainder of his career in a Maple Leafs jersey. He’s a Mississauga native, with deep roots in and around the Leafs organization. That includes serving as the team’s captain from 2019 to 2024. He was replaced this season by Matthews.
Tavares’ last contract was often scrutinized, but his performance on the deal should be remembered fondly. He filled a hardy role as the team’s second-line center for the duration of the contract, and totaled 222 goals and 493 points in 515 games. That mark ranks third on the Maple Leafs since the start of the 2018-19 season, behind Marner (611 points in 498 games) and Matthews (595 points in 485 games). Tavares also scored 31 points in 51 playoff games in that stretch – fifth on the Leafs behind Matthews, Nylander, Marner, and Morgan Rielly.
Tavares has been a staple of every lineup he’s played for. Prior to joining his hometown Maple Leafs, he was the quintessential top-line center for the New York Islanders spanning nine seasons. The Islanders originally drafted Tavares first-overall in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, following the end of his exceptional status career in the OHL. He joined the team immediately following his draft, and scored an impressing 54 points in 81 games as a rookie.
His hot-start in the NHL continued to grow-and-grow over his time with the Islanders. Tavares recorded 31 goals and 81 points in the 2011-12 season, and topped that again with 38 goals and 86 points in 2014-15. By that time, he had already served two full years as the Islanders’ captain, and earned the second all-star berth of his career. Tavares would remain New York’s captain, and a perennial all-star, until he left the squad after the 2017-18 campaign.
Tavares’ departure from Long Island, NY was one of the most scrutinized moves in recent NHL history. It was seen by many as a captain abandoning his post, with a preference for the glitz and glamour of a big market. The Islanders have appeared in four of a possible six postseasons since Tavares’ departure, while Toronto has made the playoffs in every year since their big addition.
In a summer where Toronto seems headed for a sure breakup with superstar winger Marner, they’ll opt to not shake the boat too much by also losing Tavares. Instead, Tavares will remain locked-in as Toronto’s second-line center through the foreseeable future. He scored a stout 38 goals and 74 points in 75 games this season – his highest scoring pace since netting 36 goals and 80 points in 80 games of the 2022-23 campaign. Those are electric scoring totals for a player well over the hill of his NHL career. At a cheap price for the next four seasons, even two-thirds of those scoring totals would make Tavares a contract worth hanging onto.
Photo courtesy of Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports.
Mammoth Acquire, Extend J.J. Peterka
The Buffalo Sabres are reportedly close to finalizing a deal that would send winger JJ Peterka to the Utah Mammoth in exchange for forward prospect Josh Doan and defenseman Michael Kesselring, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. It’s been further announced that Peterka has agreed to a five-year, $38.5MM extension with the Mammoth, per Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. The Mammoth later confirmed the trade and signing. It’s a late-night blockbuster, and a rare three-player swap with no additions.
Utah has now completed the franchise’s biggest trade under its new moniker. In Peterka, the Mammoth have acquired a consistent goal-scorer they can plug into their top six without having to part with too many quality assets. Kesselring and Doan filled important needs for the team last season, but they didn’t replicate what Peterka can bring to their offense.
The German-born winger was selected by the Sabres as the 34th overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, coming from EHC München in the DEL. A year later, after scoring nine goals and 20 points in 30 DEL contests and 10 points in only five World Junior Championship games, the Sabres knew that it wouldn’t be long before Peterka debuted in North America.
He did just that the following season. Primarily playing for the team’s AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans, Peterka gave an impressive rookie performance, scoring 28 goals and 68 points in 70 games. Despite being named to the All-Rookie Team and finishing 10th in AHL scoring, Peterka lost out on the Dudley “Red” Garrett Memorial Award as the league’s most outstanding rookie to teammate Jack Quinn. 
Despite playing in two games during the 2021-22 campaign, Peterka made the full transition to NHL hockey in 2022-23 and never looked back. Being a capable tertiary scorer during the 2022-23 campaign with limited ice time, Peterka became a full-fledged top-six winger the last two seasons, scoring 55 goals and 118 points in 159 games played.
Peterka has some defensive shortcomings to work on, which is to be expected of any young winger. Still, he brings a wealth of offensive capabilities and possession quality to plug into a similarly styled offense in Salt Lake City. Peterka will join the likes of Logan Cooley, Clayton Keller, Nick Schmaltz, Dylan Guenther, and Barrett Hayton and the Mammoth’s top-six, with every player falling under the age of 30.
Meanwhile, Buffalo adds a young, right-handed defenseman whom they’ve been coveting for some time. The team was oversaturated on the left side last season, with all four of the team’s highest-paid blue liners shooting from the left. Even at 25 years old, Kesselring has already proven to be a capable puck-moving defenseman who can hold his own in the defensive zone.
It’s hard to imagine the Mammoth thought Kesselring would become the player he is. The Arizona Coyotes acquired Kesselring from the Edmonton Oilers in 2023 as part of the Nick Bjugstad trade, whom they later re-signed the following offseason. They quickly assigned him to the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners.
Since then, Kesselring has scored 12 goals and 50 points in 147 NHL contests, jumping into a top-four role with the formerly named Utah Hockey Club last season. The scoring totals may not stand out, but his possession and defensive metrics are impressive. He finished the 2024-25 campaign with a 53.7% CorsiFor% at even strength, and a on-ice save percentage of 92.2%. His positive possession quality should help the Sabres dramatically, as they finished the 2024-25 campaign as the league’s 17th-best possession team.
Lastly, Doan, the son of former Coyotes icon Shane Doan, comes to the Sabres organization without having made his mark on the NHL level. The former 37th overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft has been a productive AHL scorer since his draft year, accumulating 40 goals and 78 points in 104 games.
Still, that talent hasn’t yet translated to the NHL level, and much of that can be explained by a lack of ice time. Doan finished the 2024-25 campaign with seven goals and 21 points in 51 games, averaging 13:31 seconds of ice time in a third-line role. Unfortunately, given the talent that the Sabres have on the wing in their top-six, Doan is likely destined for the same role in New York.
PHR’s Brennan McClain contributed significantly to this article.
Photo courtesy of Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images.
Rangers To Send 12th Overall Pick To Penguins
The New York Rangers have decided to send the 2025 12th overall pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins, per Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. The Rangers were on the hook for sending either their 2025 or 2026 first-round pick to the Penguins to complete a mid-season trifecta of trades. New York originally traded the pick to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for J.T. Miller, as part of a multi-player trade. The Canucks then flipped the pick to the Penguins in a move that landed them defenseman Marcus Pettersson and forward Drew O’Connor in another multi-player deal.
The Rangers landed on this decision after finding more value in holding onto their 2026 first, per NHL.com’s Dan Rosen. It’s not necessarily a statement on New York’s behalf that they’re resigned to missing the postseason again in 2026 after falling out of the playoff frame this past season. Even an early elimination and a pick in the 16-20 range in 2026 likely holds equal or more value than this year’s No. 12 selection due to an anticipated deeper class of prospects to choose from next year.
Pittsburgh’s own pick is No. 11 overall, so they’ll have the opportunity to make back-to-back selections to add depth to a middle-of-the-pack prospect pool amid their retool. The Penguins’ system was labeled 20th in the league by The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler in January. However, they’ve since added 2024-25 SHL Rookie of the Year Melvin Fernström and 2021 first-rounder Chase Stillman to their pool in separate trades, although the latter has really struggled to adjust to the pro game.
Now equipped with two picks in the top 15, it wouldn’t be shocking to see Pittsburgh at least consider packaging the two selections or parting ways with one of them to move higher up in the draft order. They’ve got a fair amount of depth in their pool in the form of a few mid-to-late first-round choices and some high-value second-round picks, but lack a true blue-chip piece. While there likely won’t be one available to them at 11th or 12th overall, they could snag one if they manage to sneak into the top seven or eight selections.
Blues Notes: Krug, Lindstein, Buyouts
St. Louis Blues general manager Doug Armstrong confirmed that defenseman Torey Krug won’t play next season after undergoing ankle surgery this year, shares Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic. It will be Krug’s second-consecutive missed season. The news was previously reported in early May, but now comes with official word behind it. Krug’s surgery was to address a diagnosis with pre-arthritis in his left ankle. The injury stemmed from a fractured ankle sustained in the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Krug has played in 360 games, between the regular season and playoffs, since sustaining that ankle injury at age 27 in 2018. For better or worse, he looked no worse for wear in the years to follow. He posted a career-high 47 assists in 64 games of the 2018-19 season, and continued to pace-for or top 40 points all the way through his last season in 2023-24. He was mobile and effective for the Blues, bringing a puck-moving energy and snappy offense that the team lacked since moving away from Vince Dunn and Alex Pietrangelo. With Krug out, the Blues were forced to rediscover that spark through the brazen play-driving of Colton Parayko and breakout season of Philip Broberg. Both players will continue to be leaned on, while Krug eyes retirement after 778 games, and 13 seasons, in the NHL.
Other notes out of St. Louis:
- The Blues will get reinforcements for Krug’s absence in the form of SHL prospect Theo Lindstein, who Armstrong says will play in either the NHL or AHL next season per Matthew DeFranks of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Lindstein grew into a hardy role with the SHL’s Brynas IF this season – netting nine points, six penalty minutes, and a plus-nine through 44 games. He also contributed five points in 17 games to Brynas’ postseason run. His stat linen may not jump off the table, but Lindstein’s ability to handle responsibility away from the puck was strong enough to warrant a first-round selection in the 2023 NHL Draft. He followed that draft selection by winning an SHL championship with Brynas in 2024. Now, Lindstein will take the stride to North America – where his jumpy skating, poised positioning, and quick reactions should all lead to a solid role. Fans should expect the 20-year-old to begin the year in the minor leagues.
- Armstrong also shared with DeFranks that the Blues will not be utilizing any buyouts ahead of July 1st. There aren’t many aged and costly contracts on the team, especially with Krug’s $6.5MM deal set to be placed on long-term injured reserve. Perhaps the most unreasonable contract would be the $4MM due to Nick Leddy this season, though Armstrong has emphasized Leddy’s guaranteed role in next year’s lineup. Leddy scored five points in 31 games last season. With no contracts set to be cut, the Blues will enter the postseason with an estimated $5.03MM in cap space, per PuckPedia.
Flyers Recap Trevor Zegras Trade, Eyeing More Moves This Off-Season
As has become custom in the wake of big roster trades, Philadelphia Flyers general manager Daniel Brière sat down with the media to discuss the team’s acquisition of Trevor Zegras on Monday morning. Brière most notably shared that the Flyers had already engaged the Ducks in talks around a trade for Zegras, shares ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski. Brière went on to share that previous talks fell through because of Philadelphia’s lack of assets and Anaheim’s lack of desire to rush a move.
That sentiment will ring loud as the Flyers spark their off-season with a big swap. Ryan Poehling – the only skater featured in the return package – filled an important third-line role for the Flyers this season. He scored a career-high 31 points in 68 games and was often the champion of the simple tasks, supporting Philadelphia’s jump up the ice or surge to regain possession. It’s possible that the team couldn’t be pried away from their impactful depth forward until after the season concluded, and they had a full summer to properly assimilate Zegras into his new role.
But what that role will look like still remains a glaring question mark. Brière spoke candidly about the team’s lack of depth down the middle and shared that he hopes Zegras can eventually return to his role at center. But he made sure to note that the final decision will rest with new head coach Rick Tocchet, per Charlie O’Connor of PHLY Sports.
Zegras looked more comfortable on the wing in the time leading up to his first-round selection in the 2019 NHL Draft, but Anaheim invested significant development into shifting the skillful forward over to the middle lane. The center role supported Zegras to the two highest-scoring seasons of his career, when he combined for 46 goals and 126 points in 156 games. But the Ducks had to bear through his dismal 40.6 percent faceoff success rate in that span – a mark that ultimately landed him back on the flanks in the last two seasons.
Brière acknowledged that Zegras’ dip in scoring is why he was available on the open market. The recently turned 24-year-old winger fell to just 32 points in 57 games this season, far off his career-high mark of 65 points set in the 2022-23 campaign. In the end, Brière says that the bet on Zegras returning to strong scoring is a risk the Flyers are willing to take, even if it was difficult to give up Poehling.
Even more exciting, Brière went on to say that the acquisition of Zegras is meant to be just one piece of a big puzzle this summer, shares O’Connor. The team wants to improve through shrewd additions on the trade or free agent market. But they’ll make those decisions with caution, and particularly don’t want to part with any of their three first-round picks in Friday’s 2025 NHL Draft, per Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia. The club could land an impactful player in each of the three position groups in this year’s first round, and was predicated to draft center Jake O’Brien, defender Kashawn Aitcheson, and goaltender Joshua Ravensbergen in PHR’s 2025 Mock Draft. All three players have warranted plenty of attention for their explosive and reliable performances this season.
It’s not clear the exact extent to which Brière wants to build up the Flyers this summer. They ranked dead last in the Eastern Conference last season and have already undergone multiple layers of change this summer. It may be overeager to push the team towards playoff contention next season, though a few more high-upside and young additions like Zegras could go far towards catapulting Philadelphia’s rebuild forward. That momentum, spurred by a trio of top prospects, could push the Flyers into closer contention with future standouts like the San Jose Sharks and Columbus Blue Jackets.
Image courtesy of Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images.