Sabres Likely To Explore Moving Devon Levi
For the last little while, there has been growing speculation that the Buffalo Sabres will move on from netminder Devon Levi relatively soon. Those rumors aren’t going away anytime soon. Speaking on Coming In Hot, Jeff Marek of the Daily Faceoff shared that the relationship between the Sabres and Levi is “over”.
Specifically, Marek mentioned that the Ottawa Senators had recently reached out to the Sabres regarding Levi in the hopes that he could play in the backup role behind Linus Ullmark. Marek opined that the Senators could reach out to Buffalo again this summer about the netminder’s availability.
While it’s rare for intradivisional rivals to engage in trading, the Senators and Sabres collaborated on a deal that sent Joshua Norris to Buffalo and Dylan Cozens to Ottawa last year. However, that trade was made when Kevyn Adams was the General Manager of the Sabres, and it’s unknown if Jarmo Kekäläinen will have the same appetite to make intradivisional swaps.
Regardless, it would make sense for Buffalo to make Levi available in trade talks this summer. The Sabres already have the tandem of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Alex Lyon signed through next season, and will presumably retain Colten Ellis as the third-string option unless they decide to expose him to the waiver wire in September.
For the past two years, Levi has almost exclusively played for the AHL’s Rochester Americans. Overall, he has maintained solid production, but can be relatively streaky at times. Throughout the past three years, he has managed a 64-39-22 record in 120 AHL contests with a .914 SV% and 2.52 GAA, including 10 shutouts. Additionally, he has a 17-17-2 record in 39 NHL games with a .894 SV% and 3.29 GAA.
In the podcast, Marek suggested that the relationship between Buffalo and Levi has declined, given the initial excitement the team expressed when signing him and the lack of extended NHL opportunities since then. Since he’s signed through next season at an $813K salary, Levi doesn’t have much say in the matter, but would likely welcome any change of scenery that comes with more NHL playing time.
Obviously, the Edmonton Oilers immediately come to mind as a team that should inquire about Levi should the Sabres make him available. Although the Oilers are desperate, it’s unlikely that Buffalo will force them to part with significant capital, given that not many teams are looking for goaltending improvements this summer. Yes, the Oilers desperately need goaltending help, but the Sabres don’t have much flexibility to start a bidding war with other teams.
Vancouver Canucks Fire Adam Foote
The changes coming to the Vancouver Canucks won’t end at the front office. According to TSN’s Darren Dreger, the Canucks are parting ways with head coach Adam Foote and are expected to make additional changes to the coaching staff.
Shortly after Dreger’s report, the Canucks confirmed Foote’s dismissal in a team announcement. Additionally, the team has let go of assistant coaches Scott Young, Kevin Dean, and Brett McLean, starting fresh for the 2026-27 campaign.
It’s not a huge surprise to see Foote let go, even after one season. Foote was hired by Vancouver as an assistant coach partway through the 2022-23 season as a part of Rick Tocchet‘s staff. He remained in that role for three seasons and was promoted to the head coaching role when Tocchet departed for the Philadelphia Flyers last summer.
Factoring in the subpar roster and the fact that the Canucks made major changes to the front office, Foote wasn’t given a chance to succeed in Vancouver. As anticipated, the team had a disappointing season in 2025-26, finishing with a record of 25-49-8, which was the worst in the regular season.
Furthermore, there was no area in which the Canucks played particularly well. Vancouver finished 31st in goals for, 32nd in goals against, 32nd in penalty kill percentage, 29th in shooting percentage, 32nd in save percentage, 29th in CorsiFor, 30th in High-Danger Scoring Chances, and 31st in High-Danger Scoring Changes Against. The only category where the team excelled was power play percentage, finishing in 14th place.
Unlike most head coaches, it’s unlikely that Foote will find another head coaching position this summer. While he may ultimately secure a coaching position, his track record does not compare to that of Craig Berube, Bruce Cassidy, or Kris Knoblauch, who are all coaches seeking new opportunities.
On the flip side, all three of those coaches will immediately become candidates for the Canucks. Cassidy is unlikely to take the job, simply because the Vegas Golden Knights have already blocked other intradivisional rivals, namely the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings, from interviewing their former coach. However, the Golden Knights may believe that the Canucks are so far out of contention that Cassidy’s landing in Vancouver wouldn’t come back to bite them anytime soon.
Still, it’s difficult to say what direction the Canucks will go. There are expected to be significant changes to the roster this offseason, so the team may opt for a younger coach to grow alongside the team.
In that same vein, Vancouver could look to an internal candidate. Former bottom-six center Manny Malhotra has been the head coach of the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks for the last two years, and presumably worked closely with General Manager Ryan Johnson when he was serving as the General Manager in Abbotsford.
Golden Knights Forfeit Draft Pick, John Tortorella Fined
May 19th: The Vegas Golden Knights met with NHL league officials at 10:00 AM today to appeal the severe discipline handed down following their Game 6 media blackout against the Anaheim Ducks. Ultimately, the face-to-face meeting did not result in a reprieve for the club, as the original penalties will remain strictly as assessed.
Consequently, head coach John Tortorella is still on the hook for a $100K fine, and the Golden Knights will officially forfeit their second-round draft pick in the upcoming 2026 NHL Entry Draft. The league’s firm stance stems from what it characterized as “flagrant violations” of playoff media regulations, compounded by multiple previous warnings issued to the organization regarding compliance.
While the door appears completely closed on the draft penalty being revoked or reinstated, there is a small glimmer of hope for the franchise down the line. Reports indicate that if Vegas remains fully compliant with all league rules and media policies moving forward, there could be an opportunity for the NHL to address or revisit aspects of the situation in the future. For now, however, the reigning Western Conference finalists must absorb the heavy loss of draft capital and a hefty financial hit as they prepare for their third-round series against the Colorado Avalanche.
May 15th: The National Hockey League didn’t let the Vegas Golden Knights celebrate their Western Conference Final berth for too long. According to an announcement from the league office, the Vegas Golden Knights will forfeit their 2026 second-round pick, and head coach John Tortorella will be fined $100K for “flagrant violations” of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs Media Regulations.
Although the punishment was unknown, this was an expected outcome for many. In the announcement, the league shared, “The imposition of these penalties comes after previous warnings were issued to the Club regarding their compliance with the Media Regulations and other associated policies.” After last night’s series-clinching win, Vegas closed the locker room doors to the media, and Tortorella refused to meet with them.
According to the league, the Golden Knights will have the ability to appeal the punishment, though they likely won’t have much leverage, given that they’ve been warned multiple times. Still, instead of arguing for a complete erasure of the punishment, Vegas may argue themselves into a slap on the wrist with an understanding that a harsher punishment will be had if something like this happens again.
Regardless, the loss of a second-round pick puts Vegas in a deep hole. Although they normally trade away their draft capital or trade away the prospects, they now lose one for nothing. After today’s news, the Golden Knights don’t have another second-round pick at their disposal until the 2030 NHL Draft.
The Golden Knights offered a press release of their own, saying, “The Golden Knights are aware of today’s announcement from the NHL regarding the postgame media availability following Game 6 in Anaheim. The organization will have no further comment.“
Anthony Richard Signs With HC Fribourg-Gottéron
According to a team announcement, the NL’s HC Fribourg-Gottéron has signed forward Anthony Richard to a contract for the 2026-27 season. Richard had spent the last two years playing in the Philadelphia Flyers organization and would have become an unrestricted free agent in a few weeks.
Richard, 29, began his professional career over ten years ago after being selected 100th overall in the 2015 NHL Draft by the Nashville Predators. Despite making his NHL debut with the Predators, Richard primarily played with their AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals. He topped out with a 24-goal, 47-point performance throughout the 2018-19 campaign.
After a one-year stop in the Tampa Bay Lightning organization, Richard signed a one-year, $750K with the Montreal Canadiens for the 2022-23 campaign. He scored two goals and five points in 13 games for the Canadiens, but really made his mark with the AHL’s Laval Rocket. Although he didn’t win any major awards, and Laval didn’t make it far in the playoffs, Richard finished ninth in league scoring with 30 goals and 67 points in 60 games.
Unfortunately, Montreal didn’t retain Richard the following summer, and he landed with their rival, the Boston Bruins. Again, Richard primarily played in the AHL, this time with the Providence Bruins, and had another solid campaign, scoring 25 goals and 55 points in 59 games.
A two-year, $1.55MM ($775K AAV) contract with the Flyers ahead of the 2024-25 season got Richard to where he is today. He continued to be a quality top-six scorer for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, registering 35 goals and 81 points in 108 games across two seasons. Additionally, Richard earned multiple opportunities with Philadelphia last season, scoring four goals and six points in 15 games.
Now, after failing to crack an NHL roster, Richard is taking his talents to Switzerland. Assuming he keeps up a similar scoring pace to the one he had in the AHL, Richard should do quite well overseas. Fribourg-Gottéron did not share the financial details of Richard’s deal, nor the length.
Latest On Golden Knights, Bruce Cassidy
Despite firing him with eight games remaining in the regular season, the Vegas Golden Knights are playing hardball with Bruce Cassidy‘s future. Earlier today, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reported that the Golden Knights haven’t given any team permission to interview Cassidy for head coaching vacancies.
Additionally, Andy Strickland of FanDuel Sports Network went a step further, indicating that the Golden Knights blocked the Los Angeles Kings from interviewing the former Jack Adams Award winner. However, that hasn’t been confirmed elsewhere. Still, it wouldn’t be surprising if they did, if they haven’t already, given that Vegas blocked the Edmonton Oilers from interviewing their former head coach just a few days ago.
Unless another head coach is fired in the next few weeks, that leaves the Toronto Maple Leafs as the only option left for Cassidy. However, on Friday’s rendition of 32 Thoughts, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said, “I do think they’ll reach out to talk to Cassidy, but I’d say it’s extremely unlikely he’s gonna end up being the guy in Toronto, and I do think they are prepared to go fresh. Someone new, someone different.”
As unfair as it seems to Cassidy, those are the rules of the coach’s contractual obligations. Although it’s essentially a firing, coaches are often “relieved of duties”, rather than outright fired. This means they are still bound by the contract they signed and continue to receive payment from the team that released them. So, until Cassidy’s contract with the Golden Knights formally ends, any team wishing to interview him will have to put in a formal request.
There remains plenty of speculation regarding the Kings and Maple Leafs, but it does seem the Oilers have moved on from their pursuit of Cassidy. Earlier today, it was confirmed that Edmonton received permission from Toronto to interview Craig Berube, and he appears to be the early favorite for the role.
Ultimately, if Vegas is going to continue to block their intradivisional rivals from hiring Cassidy, he’ll have to wait for another shoe to drop for his next landing spot. Although it’s hardly appropriate to speculate on someone losing their job, Andrew Brunette of the Nashville Predators and Sheldon Keefe of the New Jersey Devils may be looking for new roles this summer, given that each team will be under new management in the front office.
Evening Notes: Kuemper, Granlund, Avalanche
Heading into the offseason, the Los Angeles Kings will have just over $18MM in cap space. Los Angeles will use some of that to retain defenseman Brandt Clarke, and could burn through much of the rest if they wish to retain Andrei Kuzmenko, Scott Laughton, and Mathieu Joseph.
In a new article on Mayor’s Manor, Scott Coffman opined that the Kings could look to move netminder Darcy Kuemper to open up additional breathing room and pursue a top-six center. Kuemper, 36, managed a 19-14-15 record in 50 games this past season with a .891 SV%. Additionally, he’s one year removed from being a Vezina Trophy finalist and one year remaining on his contract.
Despite Anton Forsberg‘s strong performance last season, Los Angeles lacks a reliable starting goaltender if they trade Kuemper. However, they could form a competent goaltending committee. Erik Portillo is signed through next season, and the Kings brought in another prospect, Hampton Slukynsky, after his collegiate season ended. It would be putting a lot of faith in a pair of unproven talents at the NHL level, but it might be a risk the Kings have to take.
Additional evening notes:
- Now that the Anaheim Ducks’ season has ended, it was expected that a few players could make their way to Switzerland for the IIHF World Championships. One of them has done just that, as it was announced that Mikael Granlund will be joining Team Finland for the remainder of the tournament. Although he didn’t play for his home country last spring, Granlund represented Finland well at the Olympic Games in February, scoring one goal and three points in six games.
- Earlier today, Jesse Montano of Guerilla Sports reported that Cale Makar, Josh Manson, Brent Burns, and Artturi Lehkonen are all nursing day-to-day injuries for the Colorado Avalanche. Despite Game 1 of the Western Conference Final being four days away, each of the injured members of the Avalanche is expected to play.
Central Notes: Kealty, Malinski, McCarron
According to a new article from Alex Daugherty of The Tennessean, the Nashville Predators have interviewed Assistant General Manager Jeff Kealty for their General Manager vacancy. Still, even if he doesn’t land the job, Kealty articulated that he’d like to remain with the Predators moving forward.
Now that David Poile and Barry Trotz have moved on, Kealty likely has the lengthiest tenure in Nashville of anyone in the organization. He began with the club ahead of the 2001-02 season as an amateur scout.
Kealty remained as a scout until being promoted to the Predators’ Director of Scouting in 2007. He held that position for a decade before being appointed the team’s Assistant General Manager, where he continues to serve today. Still, given the lengthy hiring process, it’s becoming increasingly likely that Nashville will hire from outside the organization to lead the team’s front office. Kealty would be more of the same, having served only under Poile and Trotz throughout his off-ice career.
Additional notes from the Central Division:
- Evan Rawal of The Denver Gazette reported that Colorado Avalanche defenseman Sam Malinski is practicing with the team in a non-contact jersey. Malinski missed Colorado’s final two games of Round Two due to an upper-body injury. Given that the team has sustained only one loss through the postseason so far, it’s hard to imagine the Avalanche not reaching the Stanley Cup Final if they’re able to ice a healthy roster in the Western Conference Final.
- Heading into the offseason, the Minnesota Wild have six forwards on the roster that are set to hit unrestricted free agency in a few weeks. According to Michael Russo and Joe Smith of The Athletic, trade deadline acquisition Michael McCarron would like to say, but for the right price. McCarron was humbled that the Wild pursued them as aggressively as they did at the deadline, but also noted that he’s at a point in his career where he’d like some security. Given his playstyle, he may pursue a contract similar to William Carrier of the Carolina Hurricanes, who favored term over AAV a few years ago.
No Progress In Extension Talks Between Anaheim Ducks, Jacob Trouba
A little over a year ago, the Anaheim Ducks acquired defenseman Jacob Trouba from the New York Rangers in what appeared at the time as a salary dump for the latter. He was embroiled in the worst season of his NHL career, and looked more like a placeholder for the Ducks as their prospects made their way to the NHL ranks.
However, a year later, Trouba has become a fixture on Anaheim’s blue line, helping the Ducks to their first postseason appearance since the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs. Unfortunately, as much as they would like to keep Trouba, the two sides haven’t gotten close to finalizing a contract extension.
Speaking on The Fan Hockey Show, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said, “They’ve been negotiating with [Jacob] Trouba on and off, and to this point they haven’t been able to close it.” The 13-year veteran will see his seven-year, $56MM contract expire on July 1st in a few weeks.
Much of that likely has to do with the price point. Trouba and his camp are likely trying to capitalize on a resurgent 2025-26 campaign, and the Ducks may view it as a flash in the pan, though they would still like to retain him at a digestible rate. Essentially, since the 2021-22 campaign, Trouba’s performance had been declining across the board.
This season, however, he made a big comeback. Throughout the 2025-26 season, Trouba scored 10 goals and 35 points in 81 games with a -1 rating, averaging nearly 23 minutes of ice time per game. Additionally, he led the team in blocked shots, finished third in hits, and had the sixth-most takeaways on the team.
Diving deeper, his 51.8% CorsiFor at even strength is the second-highest mark of his career, and better than any season he had with the Rangers. Still, heading into his age-32 season, especially with how he plays the game, it’s a fair question from the Ducks if he can keep this up for several more years.
In all seriousness, Anaheim is likely in the driver’s seat in the negotiations, despite Trouba’s impressive season. The team has a solid opportunity this summer to re-work its defensive core for the future, without having a stark drop-off in talent. Trouba is joined by captain Radko Gudas and trade deadline acquisition John Carlson as projected unrestricted free agents this summer. If the Ducks keep only one of the trio, they’ll have a balanced right side of the blue line with Drew Helleson and Tristan Luneau in tow.
According to AFP Analytics, Trouba is projected to land a three-year, $9.25MM contract should he hit the open market this summer. Although he will assuredly earn less than his current $8MM salary, an approximately $3.1MM salary feels remarkably low for the season he just had. If Trouba does make it to the open market, he’ll likely land a deal similar to the extension Adam Larsson signed with the Seattle Kraken last year, a four-year, $21MM ($5.25MM AAV) pact, if not a little bit more.
Jay Woodcroft Expected To Interview For Other Opportunities
Last offseason, Anaheim Ducks assistant coach Jay Woodcroft interviewed for multiple head coaching positions, and is expected to do the same this summer. According to Eric Stephens of The Athletic, Ducks General Manager Pat Verbeek won’t hold him back, nor block any team from interviewing Woodcroft once those requests come his way.
In Stephens’ update, he shared a quote from Verbeek, saying, “I would never hold a coach back from getting a head coaching job. There’s only 32 of them. That’s the pinnacle of his profession so I would never hold him back from that.”
A year ago, Woodcroft had confirmed interviews with the Ducks, Boston Bruins, and Pittsburgh Penguins, and likely had others. Despite progressing significantly with the Bruins, Woodcroft became an assistant coach in Orange County for the 2025-26 season.
This all came after taking a one-year break from coaching in the 2024-25 season. His last time as a head coach came with the Edmonton Oilers, before he was fired early into the 2023-24 season. By the time he was let go, Woodcroft had managed a 79-41-13 record (.594 W%) with the Oilers, advancing as far as the Western Conference Final in 2022.
Luckily for Woodcroft, there will be no shortage of opportunities this summer. The Los Angeles Kings and Toronto Maple Leafs will be looking for new head coaches over the next few weeks. Additionally, the Vegas Golden Knights could be another suitor if they don’t sign John Tortorella to an extension after the season. Although the Oilers are again looking for a new head coach, it’s unlikely that the team would circle back to Woodcroft.
Wild Notes: Foligno, Brodin, Hynes
In this morning’s end-of-season media availability, veteran forward Nick Foligno touched on his future with the Minnesota Wild and his playing future in general. According to Michael Russo of The Athletic, Foligno stated that he would love to return to the Wild next season, but will first decide whether he wants to continue playing.
Minnesota acquired the 38-year-old Foligno at the deadline in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks. He performed admirably, scoring one goal and adding four points in 17 regular-season contests, with two additional goals and three points in 11 postseason games. His two playoff goals came in the series-clinching loss against the Colorado Avalanche in Game 5 of Round Two.
There’s no surprise that retirement is a legitimate question for Foligno. As soon as the Wild acquired him, it had all the makings of a swan song, playing out the final days of his career with his brother, Marcus Foligno. Fortunately for Minnesota, should Foligno return, it’ll assuredly be on a much cheaper deal than his current $4.5MM salary.
Additional notes from the Wild:
- According to Joe Smith of The Athletic, defenseman Jonas Brodin revealed his playoff ailment to the media. Brodin shared that he broke a toe bone after blocking a shot in Round One, a fracture that required surgery. It’s more of the same for Brodin, who has not registered 70 or more games in a single season since the 2021-22 campaign.
- Unsurprisingly, Russo indicated that head coach John Hynes isn’t expected to depart this offseason. The question is fairly typical after a team is bounced from the playoffs, especially a team as talented as the Wild. Hynes has been the main bench boss in Minnesota since the 2023-24 campaign, guiding them to a 125-78-24 record (.604 W%) in that time.