Blue Jackets Won’t Retain Mike Haviland, Scott Ford, Aron Augustitus
The Columbus Blue Jackets have announced that assistant coaches Mike Haviland and Scott Ford, as well as video coach Aron Augustitus, won’t be returning to the team for the 2026-27 season. This decision will allow recently-extended head coach Rick Bowness to bring on his own staff for his first full season with the team. Among the candidates to earn an assistant role with Columbus will be Cleveland Monsters head coach Trent Vogelhuber per Aaron Portzline of The Athletic.
Notably, these decisions will keep former Blue Jackets player Jared Boll in his assistant coach role. Boll retired from his playing career after the 2017-18 season and joined the Blue Jackets as an assistant development coach in the following year. He held onto that role until he was promoted to the Blue Jackets bench ahead of the 2023-24 season. Boll has played an integral role in developing many of the Blue Jackets’ young stars and should continue to oversee their paths next season.
Haviland will enter the coaching market with a substantial amount of experience under his belt. His coaching career began in the ECHL where he took home two Kelly Cups across four seasons as a head coach – one on each side of the rivalry between the Trenton Titans and Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies. He was promoted to the AHL with the Norfolk Admirals in 2006 and earned the league’s ‘Coach of the Year’ award in 2007. That accolade preceded a move to the Rockford IceHogs, which would represent a path into Haviland’s first NHL coaching role – as an assistant coach with the Chicago Blackhawks. He filled that role for four seasons, including Chicago’s Stanley Cup-winning 2009-10 campaign. Haviland was dismissed by Chicago in 2012 and returned to the AHL for two seasons, before taking on the head coach role at Colorado College for seven seasons. It was that role that Columbus pulled Haviland out of, first to serve as an AHL associate coach for two seasons and then to serve as an NHL assistant for the last two seasons. He will now search for a new gig with the ability to fill numerous roles.
Ford began his coaching career in 2015, after a minor-league career that spanned 552 AHL games and 172 ECHL games. He served as an assistant coach for eight seasons with the Milwaukee Admirals – a run that was briefly interrupted by one season with the Chicago Wolves. Ford earned his first NHL role – and his first NHL regular season game behind the bench – when he was hired as an assistant by Columbus in 2024. His hiring marked a reunion with then-head coach Dean Evason, who coached over Ford from 2012 to 2015, then coached alongside him from 2015 to 2018. Evason, like Ford, is on the open market after being dismissed by the Blue Jackets.
This will also mark a quick change for Augustitus. The 30-year-old coach was promoted to the Blue Jackets’ head video coach role last summer, after four years as an assistant video coach with the club. He first joined the organization in 2018.
Vogelhuber could be the first to take on a role on Columbus’ refreshed bench. The 37 year old has served as Cleveland’s head coach for the last four seasons, after four years as an assistant coach with the team. He has led the Monsters to a winning record, and three playoff appearances, in his time overseeing the bench. He was also named a coach at the 2024 AHL All-Star game. Cleveland’s performances under Vogelhuber have represented a quick turnaround for a team that posted a 68-76-23 record in the three seasons leading up to his promotion.
These changes will mark a turnover of the Blue Jackets’ bench after posting a 40-30-12 record and missing the postseason by six points. Bowness will have his chance to build a staff capable of making up that gap next season. How the Blue Jackets choose to assemble their new bench crew could tip off their plans for Bowness’ future with the club. The 71 year old is currently the oldest head coach in the NHL and came out of retirement to replace Evason earlier this season. He has signed a one-year extension with Columbus but may not have many seasons left beyond that. Columbus’ hires could suggest if a strong staff can support a few more years, or if they will lead to a warm handoff of head coaching duties.
Photo courtesy of Kyle Terada-Imagn Images.
Morning Notes: Boeser, Hall, Norris
Team USA is expected to add a goal-scoring punch to their roster for the 2026 IIHF World Championship. Top Vancouver Canucks winger Brock Boeser is expected to suit up for the Stars and Stripes in the summer tournament per Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK News.
Boeser notched 22 goals and 48 points in 75 games this season. The performance continued his downward turn after posting a career-high 40 goals and 73 points in 81 games of the 2023-24 season. Boeser earned All-Star recognition that season, an accolade that he hasn’t received since his rookie season in 2017-18. He followed the career year with just 25 goals and 50 points in 75 games last season.
This will be Boeser’s first chance to suit up for the USA’s men’s national team. He played in three international tournaments during his days in junior hockey, including captaining USA at the 2014 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. He scored eight points in five games at that tournament, then later notched five points in four games at the 2015 World Junior-A Challenge and three points in seven games at the 2016 World Junior Championships. Boeser has stood out as a shoot-first winger dating back to those international appearances and should bring a similar impact to USA’s middle-six at Worlds.
Other notes from around the league:
- Carolina Hurricanes forward Taylor Hall is not expected to receive supplemental discipline for his hit that injured Ottawa Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson, per hockey insider Frank Seravalli and TSN’s Bruce Garrioch. Senators head coach Travis Green criticized the decision, saying that the hit was blatantly high. Hall seemed to contact Sanderson’s head, and even knocked off his helmet, with a corner hit in the third period of Thursday night’s game. He was assessed a minor penalty on the play, while Sanderson left the game with 15 minutes to go. The star defenseman will now move forward with a questionable tag for the rest of the first round series. That will be a major absence with Ottawa at risk of being swept on Saturday. Sanderson is the only Senators defenseman to record a point this series. He has two assists.
- It seems the Buffalo Sabres could be without Joshua Norris for the foreseeable future. After being designated as out day-to-day, head coach Lindy Ruff shared that Norris is currently questionable to practice with the team. Norris sat out of Game 3 with an undisclosed injury. He has battled routine absence all season long and ultimately sat out of 38 games. Norris was a major part of the Sabres’ offense in his healthy stretches. He scored 34 points in 44 games and gave the team an extra motor in their top-six. Unfortunately, the Sabres will have to revert to their backup lineup with Norris again on the mend. His absence will be, in part, filled by rookie Noah Ostlund who scored two points in his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut in Thursday night’s win.
Mix Of Veterans And Prospects Is Helping Sharks Climb The Ladder
The San Jose Sharks have not been to the Stanley Cup Playoffs since 2019. They have spent six seasons since compiling one of the strongest prospect pools in hockey, using strategic late-round drafting and trades to stock the cupboards from their top forward position all the way through their starting goaltender. That draft capital has already begun to pay off. Will Smith and William Eklund are established, top forwards for the Sharks – while Macklin Celebrini became a household name and broke the team’s scoring record, all before turning 20. Their success helped San Jose finish outside of the Pacific Division’s bottom-three for the first time since their last playoff appearance – but how long will it take until San Jose takes another step forward and returns to the postseason?
The top six scorers from San Jose’s 2025-26 season feature two players above the age of 30 and four younger than 24. That balance of veteran leadership and inexperienced talent has headlined San Jose’s roster construction in recent years. Winger Tyler Toffoli helped to fill some of the gaps left by Celebrini’s all-over style, while Alexander Wennberg has proven to be an invaluable, two-way center while Smith finds his footing between wing and center roles. Both Toffoli and Wennberg are signed through 2028, which should keep the construction of San Jose’s top-six relatively the same. But much of the same may not be enough for a Sharks club that finished 17th in the league in goals scored this season, even with their electric performances.
It will take another X-factor in the top-six to jump San Jose’s offense to the heights its capable of. That could come through another veteran presence, like winger Kiefer Sherwood who earned an extension with the Sharks before his first complete season in San Jose – thanks to his unique mix of capable goal-scoring and overwhelming hitting. But Sherwood’s role will likely end up depth behind one of San Jose’s emerging youngsters.
Winger Igor Chernyshov vindicated a breakout performance in the OHL last year with 19 points in the first 28 games of his NHL career this year. He played a strong and aggressive style that proved to compliment Celebrini’s tactical playmaking well. The two outscored opponents 20-to-17 in their minutes together – an early mark of gold in Chernyshov’s first season in North American pros.
Still, Chernyshov’s impact stands out as complimentary. To find a true game-breaker, the Sharks will have to turn towards OHL phenom Michael Misa. After setting records with his age-18 season in juniors, Misa posted a lackluster rookie year. He strung together nine goals and 21 points in 45 games and seemed to spend more time adjusting to physicality than he did dominating possession. Those struggles have motivated the junior goal-per-game scorer, who told Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now that he is ready to show fans the “real me” next season. For a former OHL exceptional status grantee, that claim could carry a lot of weight. Misa commanded play at the junior level, flaunting a detailed ability to create offense. Misa taking over more play-driving at the NHL level could help to solidify one of Smith or Eklund on Celebrini’s wing next season, after the two rotated roles this year.
Once again, it will be the mix of veteran presence – Sherwood – and emerging talent – Chernyshov and Misa – that solidifies San Jose’s offensive group. But they will bring little without a solid defense to boot. The Sharks were again in the bottom-three of goals allowed this season. Part of that blame – though, certainly, not all of it – can be placed on young defenders like Sam Dickinson and Shakir Mukhamadullin. Neither carved out much of a role this season, with the end-of-year statline reading 14 points and 12 points for the pair respectively. Dickinson was another standout in the OHL but seemed to lack the same confident puck-moving in the NHL.
The Sharks may infuse some more confidence with the addition of Hobey Baker Award finalist Eric Pohlkamp, who has turned pro after winning a National Championship with the University of Denver. Pohlkamp also plays a commanding style, driving the puck on offense and throwing hits on defense. His game is more rooted in aggression than skill, which could help to carve out more space for Dickinson to drive the offense. At the least, it will give the Sharks a puck-moving defenseman on each of their top two pairs, while Mukhamadullin and Luca Cagnoni look to carve out roles behind them.
But while Dickinson and Pohlkamp both have potential to secure long-term roles, the Sharks are still missing a balance on the blue-line. Their veteran support has been led by Mario Ferraro, John Klingberg, Dmitry Orlov, and Nick Leddy. None of the four were at their best in the 2025-26 season. Orlov led the blue-line in scoring with 37 points – enough to guarantee a pillar role next season. No roles will be guaranteed for Ferraro, Leddy, or Klingberg – though. All three are set to become unrestricted free agents and San Jose has acknowledged their need to improve on the back-end. While interdivision rivals, and clear impacts, John Carlson and Jacob Trouba will be hitting the open marke,t the Sharks are more likely to find that impact through trades.
Exploring the trade market could be a wise way for San Jose to spend their eight draft picks this year, including two in the first and fourth round. Seeking out a defenseman like Colton Parayko, Dougie Hamilton, or even a longshot addition like Roman Josi could have the added benefit of pushing San Jose towards the cap floor, while adding a top defender who can take pressure off of the Sharks’ emerging youngsters. With their mix of prospect talent, draft capital, and cap space – the Sharks are uniquely positioned to try and catch big fish all summer long. If they land one or two, it could go far in stabilizing a blue-line in need.
San Jose will hope those additions, and continued breakouts from top prospects, will continue their climb next season. Celebrini has broken the century mark as a teenager – a feat only managed by two other players, Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid, since 2000. That will give the team a franchise leader but it will take more juice on offense, and a pull out of the depths on defense, for San Jose to turn that into a playoff bid. The difference in postseason versus early summer was just four points for the Sharks this season – an easily surmountable gap if sparks fly next season.
Photos courtesy of Eakin Howard-Imagn Images and David Gonzales-Imagn Images.
Evening Notes: Kleven, Tippett, Ostlund
Defenseman Tyler Kleven is continuing to progress in his recovery from an upper-body injury sustained in April 2nd’s win over the Buffalo Sabres. He has now taken two practices with full contact and a face-guard and could be back in the lineup soon. Despite that, head coach Travis Green would neither confirm nor deny if Kleven was an option for Thursday’s Game 3 per TSN’s Bruce Garrioch. Meanwhile, Artem Zub remains out of practice since sustaining what appeared to be a lower-body injury in Saturday’s loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. Green did not have an update on Zub’s availability either per Sportscenter’s Claire Hanna.
It seems Ottawa will be forced to roll out the same blue-line that led them to a double-overtime loss on Monday. That will mean heavy minutes for usual stars Jake Sanderson and Thomas Chabot, as well as rising depth defender Jordan Spence who has taken over top-four duties in Zub’s absence. Nikolas Matinpalo should also stay up the lineup, though the Senators could rotate him with Lassi Thomson and Dennis Gilbert. Sanderson is the only Senators’ defenseman to score so far this postseason. He has two assists in as many games. So long as he can continue to elevate the blue-line, Ottawa stands a chance of hanging on against the Hurricanes.
Other notes from around the league:
- Top Philadelphia Flyers winger Owen Tippett missed the team’s Wednesday practice to nurse an injury that he has been playing through, head coach Rick Tocchet told NBCS’ Jordan Hall. He is expected to suit up for Wednesday’s Game 3 against the Pittsburgh Penguins despite the injury. Tippett has one assist in two playoff games so far, while Philadelphia holds a 2-0 lead over the Penguins. He should continue to line up next to Tyson Foerster and Trevor Zegras, maintaining a trio that has proven explosive in the early postseason.
- Buffalo Sabres rookie center Noah Ostlund could return to the lineup in Thursday night’s Game 3 against the Boston Bruins per Matthew Fairburn of The Athletic. Ostlund has not played since sustaining an injury in Buffalo’s March 25th matchup – an overtime loss to the Bruins. The rookie emerged as a reliable, fourth-line center for Buffalo. He played through his first NHL season and racked up 11 goals and 27 points in 60 games, to go with 10 points in seven AHL games. He should take on a fourth-line role over one of Beck Malenstyn, Joshua Dunne, or Jordan Greenway if and when he returns to full health. The decision of who to pull out of the lineup will be a delicate one for Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff, as the fourth-line has currently brought a lot of physicality to a hard-nosed matchup. Ostlund is still adjusting to NHL physicality and will be making his Stanley Cup Playoff debut when he makes it back into the lineup.
Ducks’ Radko Gudas Ruled Out Of Game 2
The Anaheim Ducks will be without their captain in Game 2 against the Edmonton Oilers. Defenseman Radko Gudas has been ruled out with an undisclosed injury per Jason Gregor of Sports 1440. Gudas will be replaced by Drew Helleson making his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut.
Gudas played under 10 minutes of ice time in Game 1. He was also held out of Anaheim’s season finale for maintenance reasons. Gudas battled a lower-body injury sustained in a win over the Calgary Flames on Thursday, March 26. He went on to miss nine of the final 10 games of Anaheim’s season. While no connection between that injury and Gudas’ current absence was made, it seems likely that he is still working his way back to 100 percent. He will move forward with a day-to-day designation, per Zach Laing of Oilers Nation.
Gudas has recorded two points and 39 penalty minutes in his last 13 games, including Game 1 of the postseason. Those stats bring him up to 13 points, 67 penalty minutes, and 164 hits in 56 games this season. He has slowed down both his scoring and aggression in his age-35 season, after reaching 18 points, 128 penalty minutes, and 232 hits in 66 games just two seasons ago. Still, Gudas will be a valuable, physical addition to Anaheim’s playoff race when he is back to full health.
Helleson will look to make up for Gudas’ physical presence from Anaheim’s third pair. The 24 year old notched 15 points, 63 hits, and 79 shot blocks in 60 gamse this season. Much of his action came in relief of Gudas’ injuries. He brings a thin amount of championship experience to the Ducks lineup, having won a Gold Medal at the 2018 World U17 Hockey Challenge and 2021 World Junior Championships. Helleson won’t bring the aggression or hitting that Gudas does but should play responsibly enough to compliment rookie defender Tyson Hinds.
Bruins Sign Billy Sweezey To One-Year, Two-Way Extension
The Boston Bruins have re-signed pending unrestricted free agent Billy Sweezey to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will carry a cap hit of $850K in the NHL. Sweezey has spent the last five seasons in the AHL. He joined the Providence Bruins in 2024 and serves as an alternate captain for the club.
Sweezey has racked up 17 points, 84 penalty minutes, and a career-high plus-21 in 69 games this season. His single goal on the season gave Sweezey three consecutive seasons with only one score – a pattern he repeated in the first three seasons of his career at Yale University. Sweezey has continued to offer the chippy, defensive style that he took on way back with the USHL’s Chicago Steel in 2015.
Sweezey signed his first pro contract with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in 2020, after racking up 29 points and 159 penalty minutes in 127 games at Yale. He only reached four assists in 22 games in the AHL’s shortened 2020-21 season. He left the Penguins and signed a deal with the Cleveland Monsters in the following summer. A move to Ohio proved to bring much more action, pushing Sweezey to 11 points and 114 penalty minutes in 70 games of his first season in Cleveland.
His 2021-22 performance was such a pleasant surprise that the Columbus Blue Jackets signed Sweezey to a two-way NHL contract in March 2022. The Blue Jackets vindicated that deal roughly one year later, when Sweezey made his NHL debut on February 26, 2023. He would go on to play in nine games with Columbus marked by one assist, nine penalty minutes, and a minus three. Sweezey has since spent the last three seasons in a full-time, AHL role – though the Boston Bruins kept him on an NHL contract when they signed him out of free agency. Sweezey has already recorded 27 points and 151 penalty minutes in 133 games with the Providence Bruins and will stay on a two-way NHL deal next season.
Canucks Granted Permission From Leafs To Speak With Shane Doan
The Vancouver Canucks are continuing to seek out new names for their front office. Their latest candidate could come from the Toronto Maple Leafs. Vancouver has requested permission to speak with Toronto special advisor Shane Doan position per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. It was later reported that permission was granted per John Shannon of 100% Hockey.
It is not yet clear what position Vancouver sees Doan stepping into. Doan has filled a GM advisory role in Toronto for the last three seasons, after three seasons as the Director of Hockey Administration with his alumni Arizona Coyotes.
Doan has not yet filled a GM role at the NHL or AHL level but the job is not unfamiliar. He served as Team Canada’s GM at the 2022 Winter Olympics, World Championship, and Spengler Cup. Canada won a Silver Medal at the World Championship but did not reach the podium at the other two events . Doan was also an assistant GM at the 2019 Spengler Cup, 2021 World Championship, and 2023 World Championship. Canada won the Spengler Cup and two Golds at the World Championship in those tournaments.
Doan is much more known for his accomplishments as a player. He was originally drafted by the Winnipeg Jets and played his NHL rookie season in the team’s final season before moving to Phoenix. Doan became a star in the desert, routinely rivaling 50 points and 50 penalty minutes each season. He was quickly one of the team’s most reliable forwards and took on a top-line role next to hockey legends Jeremy Roenick and Keith Tkachuk in his early career. He did not leave that role through the final 20 years of his career, all spent with the Coyotes franchise. Doan was awarded the Coyotes’ captaincy in 2003 and carried it until he retired in 2017. He called his career to a close with the most games (1,540), goals (402), assists (570), and points (972) in Coyotes history. Doan’s son, Josh Doan, was drafted by Arizona in 2021 – but has since been traded to the Buffalo Sabres. Doan’s wife, Andrea Doan, was named to the Phoenix Hockey Exploratory Committee – a group geared towards returning NHL hockey to Phoenix – in September.
How the Vancouver Canucks see Doan fitting in is not clear but there is no doubt about his rich experience in NHL and international hockey. He has now served six seasons in NHL front offices and could fit in a variety of assistant, advisory, or development roles. Before they can brainstorm around a job title, Vancouver will first need to get permission from the Maple Leafs, who may see Doan as a helpful support to their own search for a new GM.
Blackhawks’ Anton Frondell Among Six Prospects Named To Team Sweden
Top Chicago Blackhawks prospect Anton Frondell is set to head back overseas after joining Chicago for the final 12 games of the regular season. He will join Team Sweden at the 2026 World Championships set to take place in Switzerland per Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times. Frondell is one of six players named to Sweden’s roster who also played for the country in the 2026 World Junior Championship.
Also named to the Swedish roster are top draft prospects Ivar Stenberg and Viggo Bjorck, Philadelphia Flyers prospect Jack Berglund, St. Louis Blues prospect Love Harenstam, and Winnipeg Jets prospect Sascha Boumedienne.
Frondell could be a star addition to the Swedish roster. He scored 20 goals and 28 points through 43 games in Sweden’s SHL this season. It was a standout performance that led Djugardens IF in goals just one year after Frondell formed a dynamic duo with New York Islanders prospect Victor Eklund to help Djugardens earn a promotion from Sweden’s HockeyAllsvenskan. Frondell continued to prove his worth as a high-end scorer in his move to the NHL. He finished Chicago’s season with three goals and nine points. That is the highest per-game scoring in the NHL of any player on Sweden’s roster this season – though the Tre Kronor roster is younger than usual.
Usual batterymate, Eklund, may not be able to join Sweden in time to make the roster. He is set to play in the AHL’s Calder Cup Playoffs with the Bridgeport Islanders, where he has already racked up 10 points in nine games. Bridgeport faces a perennial Calder Cup threat in the first round – the Hershey Bears. That will make for a competitive series that could lead Eklund to the World Championships with an early exit – though the Islanders are a formidable lineup of their own with the additions of Eklund, Cole Eiserman, and Calum Ritchie
Frondell will likely line up on Sweden’s top-line alongside two of Stenberg, Bjorck, Jakob Silfverberg, Nils Hoglander, or Linus Karlsson. The latter two spent their seasons with the Vancouver Canucks and scored five and 35 points respectively. Canucks defense prospect Tom Willander was also invited to join Sweden’s roster but declined to focus on his off-season training per Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK News. Willander broke into a routine NHL role this season and finished the year with 21 points in 70 games.
Even with a young roster and rejections from some potential difference-makers, the Swedes will still enter the 2026 World Championship as favorites to earn a medal. Their top competition will be Team USA, Canada, Finland, and Czechia – as has become the case in recent years.
Trevor Lewis Announces Retirement
Two-time Stanley Cup champion Trevor Lewis has announced the end of his playing career. Lewis played 17 seasons and 1,034 games in the NHL between 2008 and 2025, including 14 seasons with the Los Angeles Kings. He filled an important, depth role in the Kings’ race to the 2012 and 2014 Stanley Cups. Lewis also holds the honor of most NHL games played by a Utah-born player.
Lewis’ hockey career began with the USHL’s Des Moines Buccaneers in the 2004-05 season. He quickly stood out as a grinder for the Buccaneers. After a quiet rookie season, he exploded in his draft season of 2005-06. Lewis finished the year with 35 goals and 75 points in 56 games. His ability to bring tempo to his shifts helped Des Moines blaze their way to the 2006 USHL Clark Cup Championship. It also earned Lewis a string of individual awards, including the USHL’s MVP and ‘Gentleman of the Year’ awards, as well as the USA Hockey Player of the Year award.
Even with those accolades, Lewis was ranked as a third-round talent by The Hockey News headed into the 2006 NHL Draft. That low rank didn’t stop the Kings from going out on a limb for Lewis in the first-round. Los Angeles traded away forward Pavol Demitra, fresh off a 62-point first season with the team, to acquire depth winger Patrick O’Sullivan and the 17th overall pick, used to select Lewis.
Lewis was originally committed to the University of Michigan following his draft but decided to sign an entry-level contract with Los Angeles instead. That left him ineligible for college – and prompted to sign with the OHL’s Owen Sound Attack. By location, the Utah-born Lewis was eligible for the WHL, not the OHL – but the CHL Board of Governors decided to allow Lewis to move to the Ontario league. He went on to nearly match his scoring from the prior year, with 73 points in 62 games.
Lewis moved to the AHL at the end of the season and scored six points in his first eight games. His scoring cooled down in his rookie AHL season, but Lewis heated up with his footing under him. He began his second pro season with 19 points in the first 28 games of the AHL season. That prompted the first NHL call-up of his career, a move he rewarded with three points in his first four games. He played two additional scoreless games before being reassigned for the remainder of the season. His 2008-09 season ended with 51 points in 75 AHL games.
A taste of NHL hockey helped Lewis break camp with the Kings for the 2009-10 season. He wound up as a healthy scratch after five scoreless games to start the season and was reassigned to the minors before the calendar turned over. He finished the year with just seven points in 23 AHL games. It was a muted season, but it didn’t knock Lewis off-course. He earned a full-time role with the Kings in the 2010-11 season and quickly settled into a bottom-six role that he would fill for the next 10 seasons.
Lewis’ scoring never flashed too bright. He scored only 20 points across 144 games between 2010 and 2012. Despite that, he seemed to have a knack for showing up in must-win games. Lewis scored four points in six games of the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs, then returned with nine points in 20 games of the Kings’ Cup-winning 2012 run. That scoring included two goals in the Cup-winning Game 6 of the Cup Finals. He combined for 25 points in 121 games across the next two seasons, backed by eight points in 44 playoff games. While again quiet scoring, Lewis did rack up 216 hits in 70 playoff games between 2010 and 2015 – the ninth-most of any NHL skater in that timeframe, and second on the Kings to Dustin Brown‘s league-leading 330 hits.
Lewis proved capable of filling a depth-grinder role on a championship roster twice over during his time with the Kings. His career continued to follow the path of low-scoring, high hit totals, and depth minutes. He scored a career-high 14 goals and 26 points in 68 games of the 2017-18 season, narrowly beating out 25 points scored in the 2014-15 season and 24 points scored in 2016-17. Two years later, the Kings opted to leave Lewis in free agency after 12 seasons with the team. He signed a one-year contract with the Winnipeg Jets after attending training camp on a professional tryout. Lewis turned that deal into 10 points, just two penalty minutes, and a plus-seven in 56 games with Winnipeg.
Lewis was again left in free agency in the following summer and, at the age of 35, decided to sign a one-year deal with the Calgary Flames for the 2021-22 season. That deal reunited Lewis with head coach Darryl Sutter, who led the Kings’ Cup runs. He scored 16 points in 80 games in his first season with the Flames, enough to earn another one-year deal, which he matched with 16 points in 82 games in the 2022-23 season. That year was just the second time that Lewis played every game of the season, joining the 2016-17 season.
The Kings brought Lewis home for the final two seasons of his career. He was slower and less involved than he looked in the prime of his career, but still managed a commendable 28 points in 142 games from a fourth-line role to close things out. Lewis, now 39, did not re-sign for the 2025-26 season and will now move his career forward.
He calls things to a close with the fourth-most hits (1,429), the sixth-most playoff games (86), and the seventh-most regular-season games (816) in the Kings franchise history. His all-three-zones energy and grit are traits teams still search for as they hope to build Cup-winning depth charts. He is a Utah-great and could find the next steps of his career in supporting the burgeoning Utah hockey scene.
Photo courtesy of Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports.
Flyers Recall Five Players
The Philadelphia Flyers have shored up their depth with a series lead over the Pittsburgh Penguins. Philadelphia has recalled forwards Oscar Eklind and Jacob Gaucher, defensemen Helge Grans and Hunter McDonald, and goaltender Carson Bjarnason to serve as black aces. The five will join the Flyers roster following the end of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms’ season in the AHL.
Gaucher is the only call-up who played multiple NHL games this season. He stepped into four games with the Flyers, split between a three-game call-up in January and a one-game stint earlier this month. Gaucher posted no scoring, no penalty minutes, and a minus-one in those appearances. He was a fixture of Lehigh Valley’s middle six and finished the AHL season with 20 goals, 36 points, and 44 penalty minutes in 69 games. His scoring ranked second on the Phantoms in goals and third in points.
McDonald received his NHL debut near the end of Philadelphia’s regular season. He recorded one assist, four penalty minutes, and a plus-three while only playing in 15 minutes of ice time. It was a high-energy performance from a player who seemed to only find the penalty box in the minor-leagues. The second-year pro racked up just six assists to go with 92 penalty minutes in 65 AHL games this season. That mark fell just under his rookie AHL season last year, when he notched 18 points and 99 penalty minutes in 71 games.
While the big presence of Gaucher and McDonald earned an NHL look, Philadelphia’s remaining call-ups spent the season in the minor-leagues. Eklind racked up nine goals and 15 points in 49 games with Lehigh Valley. It was his second season in North America after rising the ranks of Sweden’s pro leagues over the last eight seasons. Grange scored 14 points in 61 games, a step down from his 23 points last season. Grange also played the first six games of his NHL career last season, marked by one assist and two penalty minutes. Bjarnason played through his first pro season this year. He split results in two ECHL games, with a .881 save percentage, and recorded 14 wins and a .877 save percentage in 32 AHL games.
Philadelphia will also bring up an overwhelming amount of size in these recalls. The 6-foot-3 Gaucher is the only one of the five under 6-foot-4. Where he brings an impact in front of the net, Eklind offers shooting from the flanks, and both Grange and McDonald bring imposing physicality on the blue-line. In the mix, Bjarnason will stand as the young prospect with upside. Even with that range of talent, it is unlikely any of the five will step into Stanley Cup Playoff action unless Philadelphia faces multiple injuries.