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Canucks Re-Sign Brock Boeser To Seven-Year Contract

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In a surprising swing, scoring winger Brock Boeser is remaining with the only organization he’s ever known. According to Sportsnet’s Dan Murphy, the Canucks are signing Boeser to a seven-year, $50.75MM contract, with an AAV of $7.25MM. Shortly thereafter, the Canucks made the signing official.

After months of trade rumors and a speculated separation, Boeser will make the surprising decision to stick around in Vancouver. He was shopped around heavily at the 2025 Trade Deadline, with Vancouver asking for as much as a first-round pick in return. No deal came together, though multiple teams were reportedly interested in offers, including the Carolina Hurricanes. A looming trade was enough to kick contract negotiations between Boeser and Vancouver to the summer – but Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin emphasized that the team remained interested in re-signing the scoring winger. That emphasis came in the midst of many other teams expressing interest in signing Boeser – including the Anaheim Ducks, who viewed him as a potential backup to signing Mitch Marner.

Instead, Boeser will commit to staying a Canuck through the bulk of his career. He joined the club with the 23rd-overall pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, following a standout season with the USHL’s Waterloo Black Hawks. Boeser followed his draft with two seasons as the University of North Dakota, where he became renowned for his ability to score goals in the big moments. His freshman year was headlined by 27 goals and 60 points in 42 games, though unfortunate circumstances and battles with injury held him to just 34 points in 32 games as a sophomore. Boeser curbed that misfortune by signing his entry-level contract at the end of the 2016-17. He was granted the first nine games of his NHL career shortly after, and quickly broke out with the first four goals and five points of his career.

With that, Boeser stamped the presence he brings to the lineup. He flashed as a volume shooter capable of taking advantage of slight openings and momentum in the rush. Those are the exact traits that led him to an impressive 29 goals and 55 points in 62 games of his rookie season – good for second in goals, and fifth in total points, among a loaded rookie class that also featured Kyle Connor, Alex DeBrincat, Clayton Keller, and Mathew Barzal. But Boeser’s flashy 2017-18 rookie campaign didn’t come without misfortune. He sustained a foot injury in just the first few games of the season, then again partway through the year with what was ultimately diagnosed as a bone bruise — in addition to a hand injury in February.

Boeser pushed through the injury, but his rookie season was ultimately cut short just a couple of months later when he fractured his back on an attempted hit. It derailed what could have been a Calder Trophy-winning campaign, but Boeser made an impressive surge back to health in the following season. For the string of injuries that he faced, Boeser’s on-ice product remained surprisingly consistent. He scored 26 goals and 56 points in 69 games of his sophomore year in the NHL, then scored 45 points in 57 games – a 65-point pace across 82 games – in year three.

Continued injuries held Boeser below 75 games played through the 2022-23 season, even as his scoring remained consistent. Injuries appeared to be a perennial issue, until Boeser surged back to full health and appeared in all but one of Vancouver’s games in the 2023-24 season. Good health brought with it a breakout year – underlined by Boeser netting 40 goals and 73 points during the regular season, and 12 points in 12 postseason games. It was his first time breaking the 30-goal ceiling.

But Boeser recorded a lofty 19.6 shooting percentage in his career-year – a mark that seemed far from sustainable given his career-long 12.7 shooting percentage entering that season. As expected, Boeser’s shooting percentage and stat line fell accordingly this season — with him finishing the year on 50 points, split evenly, and a 17.2 shooting percentage in 75 games played. That’s a hardy decline, but it could be closely coupled to Vancouver’s sharp decline in total goals scored. The team ranked sixth in the league with 279 goals, but fell all the way to 23rd in the league with just 233 goals this year. Their season was marred by challenging questions surrounding Boeser, J.T. Miller, and Elias Pettersson. It’s hard to ensure that all of those questions have been ironed out, but a hardy extension for Boeser should give the squad a reinforced focus on offense heading into the 2025-26 campaign.

Photo courtesy of Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports.

Avalanche Sign Parker Kelly To Four-Year Contract

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According to a team announcement, the Colorado Avalanche have signed depth forward Parker Kelly to a four-year contract. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that it’ll be a $6.8MM deal for Kelly with an AAV of $1.7MM.

There’s no questioning the length of Kelly’s new contract, given he played last season on a one-year, $825K agreement with Colorado. Still, due to several injuries throughout the season in Denver, Kelly received a larger opportunity than expected with the Avalanche.

He spent much of his time on the team’s fourth line, but snuck into the third line when needed. He wasn’t the best fill-in option at center, given his 43.0% success rate in the faceoff dot with over 700 opportunities. Still, he provided quality scoring in his role, putting up eight goals and 19 points in 80 contests.

Despite the lack of success down the middle, he was a net positive toward the bottom of Colorado’s forward core. He managed a 51.5% CorsiFor% at even strength, the highest mark of his career, and a 91.5% on-ice save percentage at even strength, also being the highest of his career.

He made well on his tryout with the Avalanche, and the team rewarded him by making him a mainstay in their bottom-six for the next several years. Still, the team has several other additions to make this summer if they want to put together a complete and sustainable fourth line.

Flyers Sign Christian Dvorak, Noah Juulsen, Dennis Gilbert

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12:32 p.m.: The Flyers have confirmed those signings and also announced a one-year deal for defenseman Dennis Gilbert worth $875,000. Gilbert, 28, had six points and 63 hits in 29 games last year with the Sabres and Senators.

11:04 a.m.: According to Rick Dhaliwal of The Athletic, the Philadelphia Flyers are expected to sign defenseman Noah Juulsen. PuckPedia quickly followed up, indicating it’ll be a one-year, $900K investment by Philadelphia. Furthermore, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports the Flyers have also signed center Christian Dvorak to a one-year, $5.4MM contract. PuckPedia added that Dvorak will earn a $4MM base salary with Philadelphia and a $1.4MM signing bonus.

Juulsen will be following his former head coach, Rick Tocchet, with the Vancouver Canucks, to the Flyers organization. He was only afforded a quick trip through unrestricted free agency after a disappointing year with the Canucks. Limited by injuries, Juulsen concluded the 2024-25 campaign with no points over 35 games, averaging 16:17 of ice a night in a bottom-pairing role.

Already carrying quality depth on the right side of their defense, the Flyers are likely expecting Juulsen to fit into a depth role this season. He’s a fairly physical blue liner, averaging nearly three hits per game throughout his career. Furthermore, he earned a 90.3% on-ice save percentage at even strength throughout his tenure in Vancouver.

Meanwhile, the Flyers have also added one of the best remaining free-agent options at center in Dvorak. He’s coming off a quality season with the Canadiens, scoring 12 goals and 33 points in 82 games with a -5 rating. He’ll be a boon for Philadelphia in the faceoff dot, managing a 53.1% success rate throughout his 534-game NHL career.

Still, it’ll be interesting to see how the Flyers utilize Dvorak. He’s a natural center, best deployed in a third-line role. However, if the team hopes to use freshly acquired Trevor Zegras down the middle, Dvorak could move to either wing. It’s a high cap-hit for a third-line forward, but he’ll give Philadelphia some stability toward the bottom of their forward core, especially with an influx of young talent expected next season.

Furthermore, if the Flyers are unable to compete for a playoff spot down the stretch, Dvorak could become a quality trade piece come deadline season. Contending teams are scouring the market for potential centers nearly every season, and Dvorak would be a valuable trade candidate considering his tertiary scoring capabilities and strength in the faceoff dot.

Golden Knights Acquire, Extend Mitch Marner

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Tuesday: Both sides have officially announced the one-for-one swap.

Monday, 6:45 p.m.: PuckPedia has shared the financial breakdown of Marner’s new deal with Vegas:

  • Year 1: $4MM salary, $11MM signing bonus, full no-movement clause
  • Year 2: $4MM salary, $10MM signing bonus, full no-movement clause
  • Year 3: $4MM salary, $9.75MM signing bonus, full no-movement clause
  • Year 4: $4MM salary, $7.25MM signing bonus, full no-movement clause
  • Year 5: $5MM salary, $6MM signing bonus, full no-movement clause
  • Year 6: $5MM salary, $6MM signing bonus, full no-movement clause
  • Year 7: $5MM salary, $5MM signing bonus, full no-movement clause
  • Year 8: $5MM salary, $5MM signing bonus, full no-movement clause

4:07 p.m.: According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Vegas Golden Knights have acquired forward Mitch Marner from the Toronto Maple Leafs. Shortly thereafter, Friedman shared that Marner is expected to sign an eight-year, $96MM deal ($12MM AAV) with the Golden Knights. According to TSN’s Bob McKenzie, Nicolas Roy is the only player headed to the Maple Leafs in the reported deal, making it a one-for-one swap.

Arguably the league’s top available free agent since Artemi Panarin in 2019, the Golden Knights have assured that Marner won’t even reach unrestricted free agency. Marner will join a star-studded roster in Nevada that already includes Jack Eichel, Mark Stone, and Shea Theodore.

Unlike his situation in Toronto, Marner also joins a team that’s entrenched in winning. Without question, the most successful expansion team in NHL history, the Golden Knights have qualified for the postseason in seven out of their eight seasons, reaching three Western Conference Finals, two Stanley Cup Finals, and winning one Stanley Cup.

After the money is squared away, the Golden Knights should have approximately $2MM remaining in salary cap space. Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo is set to miss the entire 2025-26 season, potentially longer, providing Vegas with an added $8.8 million in flexibility. Coupled with Roy’s $3MM salary, the Golden Knights had plenty of flexibility to bring in Marner on a long-term contract.

In Marner, Vegas will add one of the league’s premier playmakers to its already high-end offense. Since debuting for the Maple Leafs in the 2016-17 season, Marner has scored 221 goals and 741 points in 657 games, averaging 20:03 of ice time per night. Aside from his offensive capabilities, Marner is exceptional on the defensive puck, earning a +128 rating with a career 52.7% CorsiFor% at even strength and a 90.1% on-ice save percentage at even strength.

By re-signing Brandon Saad and Reilly Smith over the past two days, and adding Marner this afternoon, the Golden Knights have completely addressed their need for quality wingers before unrestricted free agency has even opened. Furthermore, with $2MM remaining in salary cap space, Vegas has some flexibility to add toward the bottom of their lineup, or to shore up their defensive core with cheaper deals.

Marner’s addition reaffirms the adage of the ’rich becoming richer’. The Golden Knights finished the 2024-25 campaign with the fifth-best goals scored average (3.34), third-best goals against average (2.61), second-best powerplay (28.34%), 13th-best shooting percentage (11.0%), ninth-best CorsiFor% (51.8%), and 11th-best in high-danger scoring chances (51.9%). Interestingly enough, despite being known for his offensive talents, Marner may help Vegas the most on the penalty kill, as they finished this past season ranked 26th with a 75.74% kill rate.

In terms of the salary cap, this deal is only likely to improve for the Golden Knights. Marner will earn 12.57% of Vegas’ available salary cap next year while watching that percentage drop to 10.57% in only two years. Considering that they’ll need a new contract for Eichel after next season, Vegas should be in good shape to retain both for the foreseeable future.

Unfortunately, Marner does carry some baggage when it comes to the Stanley Cup playoffs. Like the Maple Leafs, the Golden Knights are firmly within their competitive window and have been competing for the Stanley Cup since becoming a team less than a decade ago. Although he won’t deal with a similar media landscape in Vegas, Marner will have similar expectations regarding his postseason performances.

In fairness to Marner, he’s been a quality postseason player, just not to his standard. During his time in Toronto, Marner scored 13 goals and 63 points in 70 playoff games, achieving a +9 rating. Although this would be viewed as quality production for most players, it’s a 0.22 drop-off in point-per-game average compared to his regular-season output. Now cemented in Vegas for the prime years of his career, Marner will only have so many more chances to correct the version of himself as a player when hockey becomes as important as it ever can.

Meanwhile, the Maple Leafs have done well by turning nothing into something. The likelihood of Marner staying in Toronto has been known for several weeks, and the Maple Leafs have made sure to get another asset in return rather than lose him for nothing. Unlike Marner, the player they’re acquiring from the Golden Knights has considerable postseason experience.

Over the last four years, Roy has become a valuable third-line center in Vegas. He can play all three forward positions and can move up and down the lineup, making him an extremely versatile forward.

Since becoming a full-time player for the Golden Knights in the 2021-22 season, Roy has scored 57 goals and 141 points in 284 games with a +26 rating, averaging 15:48 of ice time per game. His playoff scoring has declined, with five goals and 15 points in 40 games, but he contributed to the Golden Knights’  Stanley Cup victory in 2023. He should help create a stalwart third line in Toronto next to Max Domi and Scott Laughton.

Photo courtesy of Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images.

Metro Notes: Ehlers, Malkin, Allen, Bridgeport

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After today’s flurry of moves, Nikolaj Ehlers has arguably become the top pending free-agent forward available. Commanding plenty of interest already, Murat Ates of The Athletic lists the Carolina Hurricanes, New York Rangers, and Washington Capitals as known suitors. He also mentioned the Tampa Bay Lightning, but it’s incredibly unfeasible given their salary cap circumstances.

It’s unlikely to be an exhaustive list, but, notably, the three prominent teams listed come from the Metropolitan Division. It’s been known for several weeks that the Hurricanes were looking to make a significant addition this summer after falling short in another postseason appearance. With limited cap space themselves, the Capitals and Rangers may be engaging in some gamesmanship, and merely making life more difficult for their intra-division rival.

Still, with several prominent names taken off the board earlier today, Ehlers’s free agent landscape may have dramatically opened up over the last few hours. More than half the league is entering tomorrow’s action with more than $10MM in cap space, and Ehlers would be a notable needle-mover for nearly all of them.

Other Metropolitan notes:

  • A few weeks ago, Josh Yohe of The Athletic set the stage for a potential Evgeni Malkin trade, reporting that the Pittsburgh Penguins aren’t expected to offer him a contract beyond the 2025-26 season. Furthering that point this afternoon, Josh Getzoff, the play-by-play voice of the Penguins, indicated that General Manager Kyle Dubas will meet with Malkin and his representation regarding Malkin’s next steps with the team during next year’s Olympic break. It doesn’t necessarily guarantee a trade, as Malkin could retire in Pittsburgh after next season. Still, if he has any hopes of contending for one last Stanley Cup, he and his representation will negotiate a trade away from the Penguins by next season’s deadline.
  • Following the trend of some of his peers from today, there’s no guarantee netminder Jake Allen will be available to other teams once unrestricted free agency opens tomorrow afternoon. Peter Baugh of The Athletic reports that Allen and the New Jersey Devils are negotiating a new contract, which may extend until just before the deadline. It seems unusual for the Devils to prioritize extending Allen, especially since they already have Jacob Markström in goal, and considering that Allen would demand a high price as the market’s top available goaltender.
  • All signs indicate that professional hockey will return to Hamilton, Ontario. According to Frank Seravalli, the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders, an affiliate of the New York Islanders, are expected to relocate to Hamilton beginning in the 2026-27 AHL season. The new team would play at the freshly revamped TD Coliseum. Seravalli did not indicate if Hamilton would retain their affiliation with the Islanders after the relocation, but New York’s affiliate agreement with Bridgeport expires after next season.

Pacific Notes: Andersson, Granlund, Seabrook, Juulsen, Chovan

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A few days ago, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman mentioned that the Vegas Golden Knights had attempted to acquire Calgary Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson last week. No deal came to fruition, and TSN’s Darren Dreger doesn’t believe that the Golden Knights were the only intra-divisional opponent to try to poach Andersson from Alberta.

Speaking on The Nielson Show, Dreger indicated that the Los Angeles Kings put together a formidable offer for Andersson at the 2025 NHL Draft. Dreger believes that the offer was compelling enough for the Flames that they brought it up to Andersson, but the nine-year veteran had no interest in playing for Los Angeles.

After being previously connected to Buffalo Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram and now Andersson, it appears the Kings are under the impression that Vladislav Gavrikov won’t be back with the organization next summer. At any rate, General Manager Ken Holland is being aggressive in pursuing a replacement top-four defenseman in any way that he can.

Other notes from the Pacific Division:

  • Being one of several teams looking to add a second-line center from a thin pool tomorrow, the Vancouver Canucks have been connected to one of the top available options remaining in the free agent class. David Pagnotta from The Fourth Period reports that the Canucks are expected to aggressively pursue Mikael Granlund if he becomes available in free agency tomorrow. Pagnotta noted that Granlund is seeking a new contract with the Dallas Stars; however, it will be nearly impossible due to their limited salary cap space.
  • Back in Calgary, the Flames have added a three-time Stanley Cup champion to their player development staff. Earlier today, the Flames announced that they’ve hired Brent Seabrook as a player development coach. Despite having no prior affiliation with the Flames organization, he has been serving as a development coach for the WHL’s Vancouver Giants since retiring from his playing career.
  • Unsurprisingly, Rick Dhaliwal of The Athletic reported that the Canucks aren’t expected to re-sign defenseman Noah Juulsen before he becomes an unrestricted free agent tomorrow afternoon. Coming off of arguably the worst season of his NHL career, Juulsen went completely scoreless in 35 games with Vancouver this past season, with a -12 rating before having his season cut short due to injury.
  • According to Ben Leeson of the Sudbury Star, Kings’ draft pick Jan Chovan has signed with the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves to continue his development. The Bratislava, Slovakia native was selected 184th overall in last week’s draft. The Wolves selected Chovan in the first round of the 2024 OHL Import Draft, and he’s coming off a year with the U20 SM-sarja’s Tappara, scoring 11 goals and 23 points in 39 games with a +7 rating.

Red Wings Sign Patrick Kane To One-Year Contract

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According to a team announcement, the Detroit Red Wings have signed veteran forward Patrick Kane to a one-year contract for the 2025-26 season. Detroit shared that Kane will earn $3MM base salary, while PuckPedia reported his potential performance bonuses:

  • $2.5MM after 10 games played
  • $250K after 30 games played
  • $250K after 50 games played
  • $500K for reaching the postseason
  • $250K for Round One win
  • $250K for Round Two win

Although his base salary has decreased by $1MM, Kane has the opportunity to earn a slight raise on his new deal with Detroit. The Red Wings signed Kane to a one-year, $4MM contract a year ago to the day, with an additional $2.5MM available in performance bonuses. Unfortunately for Kane, he only earned $1.75MM of those bonuses. Still, by the time Kane reaches 30 games played in the upcoming season, he’ll have matched last year’s total.

Kane became an obvious re-sign candidate during the end-of-season press availability for the Red Wings. General Manager Steve Yzerman stated his intention to re-sign Kane, and the 18-year veteran felt the same way.

Since coming to Detroit early in the 2023-24 campaign, Kane has been a valuable secondary scorer for the Red Wings. Despite undergoing hip resurfacing surgery, Kane has scored 41 goals and 106 points in 122 games donning the ’Winged Wheel’, averaging 18:09 of ice time per night.

Kane’s recovery from hip resurfacing surgery has been fairly remarkable. He was in visible pain toward the end of his tenure with the Chicago Blackhawks, and he finally underwent surgery after concluding his time with the New York Rangers. The same surgery ended Nicklas Bäckström’s career prematurely, just before Kane had his. However, Kane has returned stronger, maintaining his production levels.

Furthermore, Kane’s speed hasn’t appeared affected by the surgery, either. To be fair, ’Father Time’ has zapped much of the speed from his Hart Memorial days, but it’s decreased only slightly since. According to NHL EDGE data, Kane finished in the 81st percentile of the league in 18-20 mph bursts pre-surgery, and 76th percentile post-surgery. He may not have the best edge work anymore, but Kane has been playing like he’s got much more left in the tank.

Max Bultman of The Athletic was the first to report that the Red Wings were finalizing a new deal with Kane. 

Central Notes: Boeser, Yamamoto, Grand Casino Arena

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The Winnipeg Jets have reportedly zeroed in on their desired replacement for winger Nikolaj Ehlers, who’s expected to become an unrestricted free agent tomorrow afternoon. According to TSN’s Chris Johnston on his aptly named Chris Johnston Show, the Jets are aggressively pursuing Brock Boeser.

There’s little surprise about the report, given that Boeser is Ehlers’ best comparable entering the free agent frenzy. Over the last three years, Boeser has scored 83 goals and 178 points in 230 games with the Vancouver Canucks, averaging 18:01 of ice time, and 61 of those points coming with a man advantage. During the same time frame, Ehlers scored 61 goals and 162 points in 196 games with Winnipeg, averaging 15:48 minutes per game, including 41 points on the power play.

It’ll be interesting to see how Boeser is deployed should he eventually sign with Winnipeg. The Jets have no reason to move Gabriel Vilardi from the team’s first line, so Boeser may join Cole Perfetti and either Jonathan Toews or Vladislav Namestnikov on the second line. If he’s unable to keep his average ice time consistent, it’ll be challenging to continue the same goal-scoring pace he enjoyed with Vancouver.

Other notes from the Central Division:

  • Earlier today, the Utah Mammoth announced that they had not issued a qualifying offer to winger Kailer Yamamoto. Still, that doesn’t mean they’re uninterested in retaining him, as Craig Morgan of The Sedona Conference reported that the Mammoth and Yamamoto are continuing to work toward a new contract. Despite scoring 20 goals and 56 points in 54 games with their AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, Yamamoto only appeared in 12 games for Utah this past season, scoring one goal and three points. Having the skill set of a top-six forward, it’s unlikely he’ll find an avenue to that role with the Mammoth moving forward.
  • Although they’ll be playing in the same arena, the Minnesota Wild’s home will operate under a new name. Minnesota Sports & Entertainment announced a 14-year naming rights partnership with Grand Casino Mille Lacs and Grand Casino Hinckley. Starting in the 2025-26 season, the stadium formerly known as the Xcel Energy Center will become the Grand Casino Arena.

Oilers Sign Evan Bouchard To Four-Year Extension

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6:33 p.m.: The Oilers have announced Bouchard’s new extension.

3:32 p.m.: As first reported by Cam Robinson of EliteProspects and later confirmed by TSN’s Chris Johnston, the Edmonton Oilers are putting the finishing touches on an extension for pending restricted free agent defenseman Evan Bouchard. Once completed, the deal is reportedly a four-year, $42MM extension, with a $10.5MM AAV.

The deal will eat up nearly all of Edmonton’s remaining cap space. Still, it was their most important piece of business to complete this summer, and they’ll now have clarity on their salary cap situation heading into the start of free agency.

According to Frank Seravalli, there were conversations regarding an eight-year agreement, but the price was too high for the Oilers to stomach for the time being. It makes sense given that Edmonton was already fairly tight to the upper limit of the salary cap, and this deal will make Bouchard the fourth-highest defenseman in the league (in terms of AAV) behind Erik Karlsson, Drew Doughty, and Rasmus Dahlin.

Aside from the generational talents playing in front of him, Bouchard has been a focal point of the Oilers reaching back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals, largely due to his offensive capabilities. From 2021 to 2023, Bouchard was a quality top-four blue liner for Edmonton, scoring 20 goals and 83 points in 163 games with a +16 rating while averaging 19:09 of ice time per night. He was even better in the postseason, scoring seven goals and 26 points in 28 games while averaging over 20 minutes a game.

His output over the last two years has completely dwarfed those numbers. Since the start of the 2023-24 campaign, Bouchard has scored an exceptional 32 goals and 149 points in 163 regular-season contests, with 61 of those points coming on Edmonton’s powerplay. Furthermore, in the postseason, he continues to improve, scoring 13 goals and 55 points in 47 games with a +20 rating.

Unfortunately, there are warranted concerns over Bouchard’s play in the defensive zone. Throughout his entire career with the Oilers, Bouchard has received extremely favorable deployment, starting 58.6% of his shifts in the offensive zone. Assuming he’s playing with Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl the majority of the time, the expectation is that Edmonton can control the play enough where they won’t have to rely on Bouchard to be in a shutdown role.

For the most part, he’s never needed to play in that role, but his defensive metrics continue to suffer. This past season, his on-ice save percentage at even strength fell to a career-low of 88.8%, marking a continual decline since the 2021-22 season.

Still, Bouchard has consistently maintained a positive impact on the game, as he has never experienced a season where the Oilers have failed to outscore their opponents at even strength while he is on the ice. This trend continues despite his defensive weaknesses.

At any rate, it’s important to note that Bouchard has averaged more than 23 minutes of ice time over the past two years for the reigning Western Conference champions. Regardless of his shortcomings in the defensive zone, he’s been the top defenseman on a Stanley Cup-caliber team for some time.

Now, with a brand new four-year contract in place, Edmonton will have additional clarity as extension negotiations begin with McDavid in a few weeks. They’ll likely want to keep McDavid on a longer-term deal than they’ve got with Bouchard, but they know the available capital they’ll have in a few years. Unfortunately for Edmonton and potentially McDavid, Bouchard will become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2028-29 NHL season.

Photo courtesy of Perry Nelson-Imagn Images.

Detroit Red Wings Sign Jonatan Berggren To One-Year Contract

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The Detroit Red Wings are making quick work of getting some of their depth players back for next season. According to a team announcement, the Red Wings have signed forward Jonatan Berggren to a one-year, $1.825MM contract for the 2025-26 NHL season.

Berggren has been an interesting depth scorer for the Red Wings over the last three years. By all available evidence, Detroit is still trying to determine what exactly they have in the young Swede.

He got off to a hot start in his professional career, scoring 21 goals and 64 points in 70 games for the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins in 2021-22. In the early stages of their rebuild, Berggren was recalled to help the fledgling Red Wings in 2022-23. Typically in a third-line role, Berggren had a quality year as a tertiary scorer, putting up 15 goals and 28 points in 67 games. He had some prominent defensive shortcomings, but that’s to be expected of a young winger.

Interestingly enough, Berggren didn’t earn a spot on the roster out of training camp the following September. He put together another quality year with AHL Grand Rapids, scoring 24 goals and 56 points in 53 games. Despite his success in the AHL, Detroit used Berggren only 12 times during the 2023-24 season, and rumors about trade availability began to circulate.

The rumors persisted until last September, when the Red Wings signed Berggren to a one-year contract worth $825K. Nearly replicating his performance from two years ago, Berggren scored 12 goals and 24 points in 75 games, averaging 12:59 of ice time per game. Despite his -13 rating, the Uppsala, Sweden native showed serious improvements in his defense, achieving a 91.1% on-ice save percentage at even strength.

Given the short-term, low-risk contract, Detroit likely wants Berggren to remain in a similar role next year. If he can replicate his defensive output and score 30 or more points next season, he’ll be a valuable bottom-six scorer for the Red Wings.

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