Afternoon Notes: Hockey Canada, Zary, Harley
A preliminary report has been released by the ‘Future of Sport in Canada’ commission, a group formed in May of 2024 focused on reviewing Canada’s amateur sports system. In it, the group made a recommendation for the creation of an independent body to oversee amateur sports across the country, shares TSN’s Rick Westhead. They claim that this group could address both funding shortages and instances of abuse or maltreatment.
The recommendation was one of 71 made by the commission in their initial report. It follows an investigation that spanned visits to 12 Canadian cities and review of over 1,000 written submissions. Their findings detailed multiple instances of abuse or neglect, including suspended or banned coaches still working within their clubs. This effort comes as part of a yearlong push to make Canadian amateur sports more safe and secure environments for children and families. The federal Heritage Committee also made recommendations for changes in the sports system in June 2024.
The creation of an independent oversight committee would be an innovative push into public support of youth sports. It could be an effort that bodies like USA Hockey – who currently handles oversight internally – looks to mimic in years to come.
Other notes from around the hockey world:
- Calgary Flames restricted-free agent Connor Zary will likely end up with a bridge-deal, per hockey insider Jeff Marek on the latest Empty Netters podcast episode. Zary remains one of the top available free agents, after posting 13 goals and 27 points in 54 games last season. That equates to a 41-point scoring pace over 82 games. Zary has stepped up as a reliable, middle-six center for the Flames over the last two seasons. He’s racked up 61 points in 117 career games, and should be due for big growth over the next few seasons. First, he’ll need to find his way back to good health after missing 47 games over the last two years due to injury. That bad luck could make a bridge deal sensible, and give Zary a chance to earn a payday before his prime years.
- Also on the Empty Netters podcast, Marek shared that the Dallas Stars aren’t likely to go above Miro Heiskanen‘s cap hit for 2026 RFA defenseman Thomas Harley. Heiskanen signed an eight-year, $67.6MM contract with the Stars in 2021, at the age of 22. The deal carries an $8.45MM cap hit. Heiskanen had totaled 131 points in 275 games before signing the deal. That’s more scoring and experience than Harley’s 103 points in 197 career games. Harley also turned 24-years-old two weeks ago. He’s a sharp offensive-defenseman who thrived in Heiskanen’s absence last season, but a lighter resume and older age could counteract a rising salary cap in his contract negotiations.
Prospect Notes: Behrens, Wassilyn, Bourque
The Colorado Avalanche have received a bit of good news in the quietest days of summer. Defense prospect Sean Behrens shared that he’s been fully cleared to participate in the team’s rookie tournament with Meghan Angley of Guerilla Sports. Behrens missed all but two games of last season after sustaining a knee injury in an October practice scrimmage. The first-year pro only suited up for the very first, and very final, game of the Colorado Eagles’ season.
Hopes were high for Behrens prior to his season-ending injury. He seemed well set for a strong push into pros after finishing a three-year stay at the University of Denver with 31 points in 44 games, and a National Championship win, in the 2023-24 season. Behrens was a core part of the title-winning Pioneers, where he often found himself playing alongside or directly behind top prospect Zeev Buium. He showed off all of the sharp stickhandling and quick skating needed to keep the Pioneers offense running with Buium off the ice, and earned the NCHC’s ‘Defenseman Of The Year’ award as a result. Behrens now faces an uphill battle adjusting his slight, 5-foot-10 frame to the pro level. He’s made strong impacts in both junior and college hockey, and could earn a top role with the Eagles with a quick return.. He’ll be a name for fans to watch – though likely one that the Avalanche take their time with – as he looks forward to a healthy season.
Other notes from around the prospect world:
- Top 2026 NHL Draft prospect Braidy Wassilyn will indeed return to the OHL’s Niagara Ice Dogs next season, then attend Boston University in the 2026-27 season, shares Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News. Kennedy mentions that Wassilyn’s return to juniors wasn’t previously guaranteed. This news puts the cherry on top of a productive summer for Niagara. Wassilyn scored 39 points in 62 games of his rookie OHL season last year. He rivaled the team’s top-six by the end of the season, profiling as a sharp and mobile playmaker with a heavy, 200-pound frame. He’ll return to great company in Niagara – set to play alongside fellow top 2026 draft prospect Ryan Roobroeck, Winnipeg Jets prospect Kevin He, and Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Ethan Czata.
- Dallas Stars forward Mavrik Bourque will now be represented by agent Olivier Fortier, Vice President of Wasserman Hockey, per PuckPedia. Borque just wrapped up his rookie season in the NHL with 11 goals and 25 points in 73 games. It was a relatively calm performance, after Bourque won the AHL’s MVP award with 77 points in 71 games of the 2023-24 season. He did maintain a positive plus-minus and consistent lineup role through his first NHL season, even playing second-line minutes through certain points in the year. He’ll face the task of now cementing a spot up the lineup, and discovering his scoring prowess, ahead of restricted-free agency next summer.
Hintz Fully Recovered From Broken Foot
Stars center Roope Hintz has fully recovered from the broken foot he sustained late in the playoffs, relays NHL.com’s Tracey Myers. The injury ultimately didn’t need surgery and he will be ready to take part in training camp next month. Hintz came back for the final two games of the series before Dallas was eliminated by Edmonton but he was clearly not at his best given the injury. He finished fourth on the Stars in scoring last season after putting up 28 goals and 39 assists in 76 games while adding a dozen points in 17 postseason appearances. It was the first time in four years that he didn’t reach the 30-goal mark, something he might have been able to reach had he been fully healthy during the regular season.
Gulutzan Focused On Making Stars More Physical
The Dallas Stars are in the midst of a frustrating streak. They’ve lost in the Western Conference Finals in each of the last three seasons, including back-to-back losses at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers. In an effort to curb their bad luck, Dallas went directly to the source to fill their head coaching vacancy earlier this summer. They hired Oilers assistant Glen Gulutzan, who brings the sharp assessment of Dallas’ roster that only a Conference rival could have. In an interview with Sean Shapiro of the Dallas Magazine, Gulutzan shared that his key focus for the 2025-26 Stars will be playing more physical.
Gulutzan’s critique of Dallas’ style certainly lands at a good time. The Stars delivered the fewest hits in the league, at even-strength, last season (1,160 total hits). They were also on the receiving end of more hits than any other club (1,963 total hits received). It was the second-straight season that Dallas ranked dead-last in the NHL in terms of hits-given versus hits-received – but Gulutzan’s urge to address that weakness won’t take too much improvement. The Oilers have also been among the league’s most out-hit clubs, ranking second-to-last in the 2024-25 season and fifth-to-last in 2023-24.
Even with that standing, Gulutzan acknowledged how much a dash of physicality transformed the Oilers. He pointed directly to the growth of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl over the last two seasons. McDavid recorded a career-high 118 hits in the 2023-24 season, while Draisaitl reached 58 hits, the second-highest mark of his career. Both players took a major step back in hits this season – McDavid recording just 40, and Draisaitl recording 23 – but star talent leaning into the physical game clearly inspired the Oilers lineup. Gulutzan told Shapiro:
You had to ask the elite players to use their skills and smarts to check, not to deliver big body checks, but to check and add a little physicality each shift… And the reality is that’s the evolution of that group. It happened because [McDavid and Draisitl] wanted it to happen, and reinforced it for everyone. I look at our team [in Dallas]. I’m putting the energy in the same spot
To their credit, Dallas does have their fair share of bruisers at the top of the lineup. Rookie Lian Bichsel managed an incredible 155 hits in just 38 games last season, confidently leading all NHL defensemen in hits-per-60 minutes played. The Stars also continue to receive heavy physicality from captain Jamie Benn, who has recorded at least 100 hits in three of the last four seasons – and 97 hits in his sole off-year. But Gulutzan will ask for more out of the rest of the team’s stars – a group likely to include Jason Robertson, Roope Hintz, Mikko Rantanen and Wyatt Johnston who managed 60, 53, 48, and 45 hits last season respectively.
A new brand of physicality could be the piece that pushes Dallas past their Western Conference foes. The Florida Panthers just won back-to-back Stanley Cups on the heels of high-pressure forechecking opening ground for their star scorers. That will be the mantra Dallas looks to adopt under new head coach Gulutzan, as they look to pave their way past the Western Conference for the first time since 2020 next season.
Bichsel Looking For Extended Role
With the Dallas Stars parting ways with veterans Cody Ceci, Mathew Dumba and Brendan Smith, the door is fully open for 21-year-old defender Lian Bichsel to make a full impact on the blue line this season, per NHL.com’s Mike Heika.
Last season, during his rookie year, Bichsel, the Stars’ first-round pick in the 2022 draft (18th overall), appeared in 38 games, recording nine points, 23 blocked shots, and a team-leading 155 hits. The hulking 6’7″, 230-pound defenseman also suited up for 18 playoff games, contributing one assist and adding 75 more hits. His 16.4 hits per 60 minutes last season was nearly 10 higher than the second-place finisher (Colin Blackwell with 6.9).
A native of Switzerland, Bichsel appeared in the Swedish Hockey League for three seasons before coming over to North America, and worked his way into Dallas’ lineup in short order. And as Heika notes, Bichsel could slot into a variety of pairings on the Stars’ third defensive unit, but skating alongside veteran Alexander Petrovic would give him a steady, experienced presence. The two also have experience playing as a pairing in the AHL.
Stars Sign Nathan Bastian
The Stars have added some depth on the wing as the team announced that they’ve signed Nathan Bastian to a one-year, one-way contract. The agreement will pay the league minimum of $775K. GM Jim Nill released the following statement:
Nathan will add forward depth and a physical presence to our lineup, both of which will be valuable to our organization. We’re looking forward to watching him take the next step of his career with the Stars and are excited to welcome him to Dallas.
The 27-year-old has parts of six NHL seasons under his belt, most of which came with New Jersey, which drafted him in the second round back in 2016. Before now, his only time away from the Devils since that time came when Seattle selected him in the 2021 Expansion Draft but just two months later, the Kraken waived Bastian with New Jersey quickly reclaiming him.
Last season, Bastian played in 59 games for the Devils, picking up four goals and six assists along with 138 hits in just under 11 minutes per night of playing time. That stat line lines up with most of his seasons as he has yet to reach 20 points in a single year while he has only hit the double-digit mark in goals once, that coming back in 2021-22. However, he averages 223 hits per 82 games played, giving the Stars some extra physicality in their lineup.
Dallas has largely stayed quiet as expected in free agency this season with the bulk of their moves coming from either re-signing players or making trades. As things stand, he’s likely to battle with Oskar Back and Colin Blackwell for playing time on the fourth line while starting out as the 13th forward is a realistic outcome as well.
At the moment, the Stars project to be very tight against the salary cap with a 23-player roster coming in just a few hundred thousand below the Upper Limit, per PuckPedia. Accordingly, this could very well be it for their free agent moves with a big chunk of their roster from last season’s run to the Western Conference Final returning as from here on out, any addition will require money coming off their books as well.
Stars’ Brandon Gorzynski Commits To Arizona State University
Brandon Gorzynski, the recent draft pick of the Dallas Stars, announced his collegiate commitment on Instagram. Starting in the 2026-27 NCAA season, Gorzynski will continue his development at Arizona State University.
Gorzynski was selected 126th overall by the Stars in the 2025 NHL Draft. Despite being drafted in the fourth round, he was Dallas’ second-highest selection in this summer’s draft, given how much draft capital they’ve traded over the past few years in their competitive window.
The native of Scottsdale, AZ, played for the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen last year and will return to the team for the 2025-26 season. As one of the youngest players on the roster, he finished sixth on the team in scoring with 17 goals and 42 points in 68 games, with a +27 rating. He also produced well in the WHL playoffs, scoring four goals and eight points in 11 postseason contests.
Despite being on a team that has only appeared in the National Tournament once (2019), Gorzynski will join one of the most competitive collegiate conferences in the sport. The Sun Devils have played in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) since the start of last season. It’s home to the two most recent Frozen Four champions, the University of Denver Pioneers and the Western Michigan University Broncos.
In their first season outside of being an independent team, Arizona State finished second in the conference with a 14-9-1-2-5 record in 24 games, finishing 10 points back of the Broncos. In the conference tournament, despite earning an opening game win against the University of Minnesota Duluth, they were dispatched in the next game by the Pioneers.
Snapshots: Heiskanen, Peddle, Penguins
The Stars will have a fully healthy and fully confident Miro Heiskanen atop their blue line when training camp begins next month, the defender told NHL Finland’s Varpu Sihvonen.
“My confidence is back where it used to be now that my knee can take all the practice and feels fine,” Heiskanen said. He told Sihvonen that his training schedule this summer has been normal after missing most of the back half of the season with a knee injury, only returning to action in time for the late stages of their second-round series against the Jets. The 26-year-old cornerstone had four points in eight postseason games upon returning, but saw a reduced workload at 21:49 per game.
Heiskanen was amid something of a down year offensively before his injury with 25 points in 50 games, but he’d operated at a 69-point pace over the previous two years with a pair of top-10 Norris Trophy finishes to show for it. With cap constraints thinning out Dallas’ defensive depth behind its big three of Heiskanen, Thomas Harley, and Esa Lindell, they’ll need him back at his peak to have aspirations of a fourth straight Western Conference Final appearance in 2026 – hopefully, this time with a Stanley Cup Final appearance to show for it.
More from around the league:
- Now-former Blue Jackets prospect Tyler Peddle has been traded in the QMJHL. He’s headed to the Charlottetown Islanders in exchange for a pair of draft picks, the team announced. He was the last pick of the 2023 draft but was not signed by June 1 of this year, making him an unrestricted free agent. He’ll hope for a strong overage season on Prince Edward Island to help him land an NHL or AHL contract next offseason. The 20-year-old center only had a 15-14–29 scoring line with a -34 rating in 54 games for the Saint John Sea Dogs last season, and his production has declined steadily since he peaked with 41 points in 64 games during his draft year for Drummondville.
- There’s been no significant traction on talks regarding any of the Penguins’ major trade chips in Erik Karlsson, Rickard Rakell, and Bryan Rust, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet said on last weekend’s 32 Thoughts podcast. Friedman added there’s still potential for those discussions to heat up near the end of the month or closer to training camp, but no big moves are imminent.
Joe Nieuwendyk, Ralph Strangis Elected To Stars' HOF
- According to a team announcement, the Dallas Stars have elected Joe Nieuwendyk and Ralph Strangis to their organizational Hall of Fame. Nieuwendyk spent seven years as a Star, scoring 178 goals and 340 points in 442 games, helping the team to their first and only Stanley Cup championship in 1999. Meanwhile, Strangis began his broadcasting career with the Minnesota North Stars and remained with the team when they relocated to Dallas. He retired after the 2014-15 NHL season.
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Stars Hire David Pelletier As Assistant Coach
The Stars have named longtime Oilers skating coach David Pelletier as an assistant on Glen Gulutzan’s staff, per a team announcement Friday.
It’s not the 50-year-old’s first NHL job. He’s worked in the Edmonton area as a skating coach for the last decade, also working as a skills coach for the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings since 2020-21 and as an assistant coach for the University of Alberta program from 2018-20.
Pelletier never played hockey at any level but is a well-known pairs figure skater, winning gold for Canada at the 2002 Winter Olympics. The team said Pelletier will not be on the team’s bench during games and will instead serve as an “eye-in-the-sky” assistant.
Dallas’ coaching turnover is now complete. After firing head coach Peter DeBoer and losing assistants Misha Donskov and Steve Spott to other roles, they’ve brought in Gulutzan as head coach and named Pelletier and Neil Graham as new assistants. Alain Nasreddine still remains from last year’s staff and will serve as the bench group with Gulutzan and Graham during games.
Pelletier is also a member of the Canadian Olympic and Sports Hall of Fame and was awarded the Lou Marsh Trophy, given to the most outstanding Canadian athlete, in 2001. He was part of the Oil Kings staff that guided the team to a WHL championship in 2022, a roster that included NHLers Sebastian Cossa, Dylan Guenther, Kaiden Guhle, Jake Neighbours, and Justin Sourdif.