Devils Recall Seamus Casey
The Devils announced they’ve called up top defense prospect Seamus Casey from AHL Utica. No corresponding move was made, nor was one necessary. There aren’t any new injury designations on New Jersey’s blue line, so it’s likely a performance-driven recall.
Casey, 21, was a second-round pick by the Devils in 2022. He signed his entry-level contract last May following two seasons at the University of Michigan and, after a strong training camp last fall, found himself on New Jersey’s opening night roster while Luke Hughes and Brett Pesce were sidelined with season-opening injuries. He only lasted a couple of weeks, returning to the AHL in late October, and has remained with Utica since, aside from a second recall that stretched from Feb. 18 to March 7.
Now in his first professional season, Casey ranks as the No. 3 prospect in the Devils system, per Scott Wheeler of The Athletic. Wheeler also ranks him as the No. 57 prospect in the league, 21st among defensemen and 13th among righties. McKeen’s Hockey ranked him No. 2 in their preseason rankings but didn’t deem Simon Nemec eligible as a prospect, while Wheeler did. Almost universally, Casey ranks behind Nemec and 2024 No. 10 overall pick Anton Silayev among New Jersey defenders who have yet to establish themselves as NHL regulars.
Casey has posted intriguing results in his limited NHL minutes this season. He’s scored four goals and added an assist in 10 games despite averaging under 12 minutes per game, adding a plus-five rating to boot. Head coach Sheldon Keefe‘s distrust in him, shown in his earlier recalls, almost certainly stems from his poor possession impacts. Despite receiving 68.3% of his even-strength zone starts in offensive deployment, Casey has only controlled 41.6% of shot attempts.
In the minors, Casey has fared well this season but not quite as well as Nemec. He ranks third among Utica defensemen in scoring with 3-15–18 in 30 games, trailing Nemec (5-18–23 in 34 GP) and Topias Vilén (1-18–19 in 40 GP).
With only six regular-season games left on the Devils’ schedule and third place in the Metropolitan Division a virtual guarantee, it makes sense for them to give one of their top prospects one last NHL audition down the stretch. It’s hard to envision him being in the playoff lineup, especially with news earlier today that fellow righty Dougie Hamilton could be an option to return before or during the first round, but he could theoretically establish himself as a better option for a bottom-pairing puck-mover over Nemec, who holds the role for the time being.
Senators Holding Out Brady Tkachuk With Upper-Body Injury
The Senators are scratching captain Brady Tkachuk tonight against the Sabres due to an upper-body injury, per Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia. He’s been dealing with a nagging lower-body issue since the 4 Nations Face-Off that’s threatened his availability but sustained a new injury when he was hit away from the play by Penguins defenseman Ryan Graves late in the second period of Sunday’s game, head coach Travis Green confirmed to Claire Hanna of TSN. Winger Angus Crookshank has been brought back up from AHL Belleville under emergency conditions and will replace Tkachuk in the lineup, the team announced.
Tkachuk did return to the game after the collision with Graves, who was assessed an interference penalty on the play. His ice time remained somewhat conservative, though, skating 15:41 in an overtime loss. While Tkachuk’s averaged north of 18 minutes per game on the season, he’s hit that mark just once in his last 11 games.
There’s no timeline for his return, and there will be understandable anxiety in Ottawa until the team gives their next update on Tkachuk’s status. The team’s leader in goals (29 in 71 GP) is a must-have in the lineup ahead of the Senators’ overwhelming likely return to the postseason before even considering his off-ice importance and intangibles as one of the league’s most antagonizing power forwards. Since he was able to return to the Pittsburgh contest over the weekend, there’s likely hope for a day-to-day timeline compared to anything threatening his playoff availability with just two weeks left on the regular season schedule.
The absence should provide a brief reset for Tkachuk, who’d gone without a point in his last three games but has 8-3–11 in 15 appearances since returning from the 4 Nations break. He only has 55 points (29 G, 26 A) in 71 games overall on the season, though, his worst points-per-game rate since the abbreviated 2021 season. Historically a mediocre finisher, he’s shooting right around his career average of 9.7%. He continues to generate loads of shot attempts, leading the team with 500 with a 96-attempt lead over second-place Thomas Chabot.
Crookshank will slot in for his second appearance of the season and first since Feb. 26. The 25-year-old winger was on hand for the loss to the Pens but was scratched and returned to the B-Sens yesterday before being summoned again today. He has 2-1–3 in 14 career NHL games, all with Ottawa over the last two seasons. The 2018 fifth-rounder also has 22-18–40 in 60 AHL games this season, down from last year’s pace but still leading the team in goals.
Golden Knights Sign Trevor Connelly To Entry-Level Contract
The Golden Knights announced they’ve signed top prospect Trevor Connelly to a three-year, entry-level contract. While Vegas didn’t announce it as such, PuckPedia confirms his deal doesn’t begin until the 2025-26 season, so he won’t be making his NHL debut down the stretch. The deal carries a cap hit of $975K and will pay him an annual salary of $877.5K if he’s in the NHL, along with a $97.5K signing bonus each season. He’s eligible for up to $750K in Schedule ‘A’ performance bonuses in 2027-28, the final year of the contract.
Connelly, 19, was selected with the 19th overall pick in last year’s draft from the Tri-City Storm of the United States Hockey League. During his two years in the league, Connelly was among the best left-wingers in junior hockey, earning All-Rookie honors in 2022-23 and a Second All-Star Team nod in 2023-24. The 6’1″, 165-lb lefty led the USHL with 1.50 points per game last season (31-47–78 in 52 games).
Connelly committed to Providence College in 2023 and jumped to NCAA play after being drafted by Vegas. He dealt with a few injuries during his lone collegiate season, capping his availability for the Friars at 23 games. He was promising but far from dominant when he was in the lineup. He put up a scoring line of 4-9–13 with a -13 rating as Denver eliminated Providence in the regional semifinals of the national tournament last week. He was able to suit up for the United States at the midseason World Junior Championship, scoring 1-3–4 in seven games en route to a gold medal.
He’s still the clear-cut top prospect in a weak Vegas pool, especially after they traded 2020 first-rounder Brendan Brisson to the Rangers in the Reilly Smith deal last month. Scott Wheeler of The Athletic ranked him as the No. 37 prospect in the league in his midseason rankings, fifth-highest among left-wingers.
A playmaker first and foremost, Connelly has top-six potential and will likely factor in on a team’s top power-play unit someday. Whether that’s in Vegas remains to be seen. The franchise has traded all of its first-round picks since its inception in 2017, aside from Connelly. He’ll need to add some muscle before getting an NHL look, but he could get a trial with AHL Henderson to finish the season before reporting to Vegas’ training camp in the fall.
Rangers Sign Gabe Perreault
4:00 PM: The Rangers have made this signing official. They’ve added their top prospect with eight games left on the schedule.
11:30 AM: Boston College star winger and top Rangers prospect Gabe Perreault will join teammate Ryan Leonard in turning pro. After reporting earlier Monday that the latter will sign his entry-level deal with the Capitals, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period adds Perreault is also expected to sign his ELC with New York and make his NHL debut this week. PuckPedia reports his deal will carry a $942K cap hit with the following terms:
2024-25 (prorated): $830K base salary, $95K signing bonus, $25K games played bonus
2025-26: $855K base salary, $95K signing bonus, $350K Schedule ‘A’ performance bonus
2026-27: $855K base salary, $95K signing bonus, $500K Schedule ‘A’ performance bonus
Perreault, the 23rd overall pick in the 2023 draft, has formed one of the most formidable duos in the NCAA with Leonard over the last two years. A product of the U.S. National Development Team Program, the 5’11” Perreault has thrived as one of the best playmaking wingers in college as a teenager. He’s the younger of the duo, still 19 years old. He’ll turn 20 in May.
Like Leonard, Perreault’s sophomore season was a tad quieter than his freshman campaign. He still finished second on the team in scoring behind his now-divisional rival, posting 16-32–48 in 37 games to tie for 11th in the country in scoring. Nonetheless, his 73 assists over the last two years are still tied for second in the NCAA behind star Denver defenseman and Wild prospect Zeev Buium‘s 74.
Perreault is the top jewel in a slightly below-average Rangers prospect pool and sits as the No. 9 prospect in the NHL, according to Scott Wheeler of The Athletic – one spot behind Leonard. The son of ex-NHLer Yanic Perreault and brother of Oilers minor-leaguer Jacob Perreault has won back-to-back gold medals with the United States at the World Juniors, posting 6-14–20 in 14 tournament games in 2024 and 2025.
He joins a Rangers team that’s still in a very legitimate playoff hunt. Despite going 4-5-1 in their last 10, no other team in the race for the last wild card spot in the Eastern Conference has won more than four out of their last 10. That means their playoff odds still remain at 32.8%, second behind the Canadiens’ 38.6%, per MoneyPuck. However, the Blueshirts have the second most difficult remaining schedule in the league behind the Red Wings, including four games against the Hurricanes, Lightning, and Panthers. They sit tied with Montreal at 77 points and would win a tiebreaker with any other team in the race with 32 regulation wins, but have one less game to play than the Habs.
Perreault should enter a Rangers top-nine, potentially even top-six, that’s been pedestrian offensively in 2024-25. He could very well get a trial on the top line opposite Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck. Their current right-winger, 2021 first-rounder Brennan Othmann, has just two assists in 16 NHL appearances this season. Barring a prohibitively difficult showing down the stretch, Perreault is an overwhelmingly likely inclusion on their opening night roster for 2025-26.
Image courtesy of Eric Canha-Imagn Images.
Capitals Sign Ryan Leonard To Entry-Level Contract
11:59 a.m.: The Capitals confirmed Leonard’s deal, confirming it’ll carry the maximum ELC cap hit of $950K.
10:39 a.m.: The Capitals are expected to sign top forward prospect Ryan Leonard out of Boston College, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports. He’ll sign a three-year entry-level contract beginning immediately and will likely make his NHL debut tomorrow against his hometown Bruins.
Leonard turning pro is far from unexpected. Selected eighth overall by Washington in 2023, he’s spent the last two seasons dominating collegiate play with Boston College. A natural center who can shift to the right wing, he boasts 61 goals, 48 assists and 109 points across 78 NCAA outings – giving him the most goals in the country by a margin of 16 since 2023-24. The 20-year-old has also posted a combined +66 rating over his past two collegiate seasons, often centering fellow 2023 first-rounder and Rangers prospect Gabe Perreault.
While Leonard’s time at BC didn’t result in a national championship, he’s won gold medals for the United States at top-level international junior play in three consecutive seasons. He captained the Americans at this year’s World Juniors, leading the team’s forwards in scoring with 5-5–10 in seven games.
The younger brother of former Sharks winger John Leonard now looks to prove he can be an impact goal-scorer at the NHL level with immediate effect. He’ll have a ton of support in a deep Washington lineup that leads the league in scoring with 3.63 goals per game, driven by a stratospheric team shooting percentage of 13.1. In terms of actual shot generation, the Caps rank a concerning 21st in the league at 27.6 per game. Adding one of the best shooters outside the NHL down the stretch should help boost that number slightly heading into postseason play, where he’ll compete to land a top-nine role ahead of names like Anthony Beauvillier, Brandon Duhaime, Andrew Mangiapane, and Taylor Raddysh.
This year aside, the news kicks off what should be an illustrious career for Leonard in D.C. as he aims to eventually take over as the team’s top sniper when Alex Ovechkin decides to end his record-breaking career. He’s the clear-cut No. 1 prospect in Washington’s system, Scott Wheeler of The Athletic opines, and ranks as the No. 4 forward prospect in the NHL behind Ivan Demidov, Will Smith, and Berkly Catton.
Ensuring Leonard is available for next season’s lineup is an essential piece of the puzzle for the Caps, who guarantee a cost-effective top-nine contributor to replace a pending UFA like the high-priced Mangiapane ($5.8MM AAV). They’ll have north of $12MM in cap space to fill just four roster spots, per PuckPedia – all at forward – allowing them to be a legitimate threat to sign one of the top 10 players available this summer.
With Leonard’s ELC going into effect immediately, it’ll expire and make him a restricted free agent following the 2026-27 campaign. That’s the same summer in which Ovechkin’s, John Carlson‘s, and Connor McMichael‘s current deals expire, along with a few other important depth contributors.
Image courtesy of Eric Canha-Imagn Images.
St. Louis Blues Sign Jimmy Snuggerud To Entry-Level Contract
5:05 p.m.: The deal is official between the Blues and Snuggerud. The Hobey Baker Award finalist has signed a three-year, entry-level contract with St. Louis, and he’ll join the team for practice on Monday.
11:08 a.m.: The Blues are nearing an entry-level deal with top right-winger prospect Jimmy Snuggerud, per a report from team rinkside reporter Andy Strickland this morning. Snuggerud’s three-year pact will go into effect immediately and allow him to join the NHL roster for the remainder of the season and playoffs if St. Louis secures a berth.
The news comes less than 24 hours after Snuggerud’s junior season at the University of Minnesota ended, losing to UMass in overtime in the regional semifinals of the national tournament. He had two goals in the contest, including one late in the third period to tie the game at four after Minnesota blew a 3-1 lead entering the third. While he hoped to wait until April to arrive in St. Louis to suit up with the Golden Gophers at the Frozen Four, he’ll come for next week’s homestand in preparation for his NHL debut.
Snuggerud, 20, was the Blues’ first-round selection (No. 23) in 2022. The 6’2″ righty is tied with center Dalibor Dvorsky as the top prospect in the Blues’ system, and Scott Wheeler of The Athletic named him the No. 22-ranked NHL-drafted prospect last month. He’s the fourth-ranked right-wing prospect in the league behind a trio of top-10 picks in Montreal’s Ivan Demidov, the Capitals’ Ryan Leonard, and the Ducks’ Beckett Sennecke.
He leaves behind a spectacular three-year college career in which the Minnesota native topped 20 goals each season, earning Hobey Baker Award nominations in 2024 and 2025. He’s tied for fifth in the country in scoring this season, leading the Gophers with 24-27–51 in 40 games. Over three years in the Minnesota program, the dynamic offensive threat totaled 66-69–135 in 119 games with a +51 rating and 113 PIMs. Since beginning his collegiate career in 2022-23, only the Panthers’ Jack Devine (Denver) has more total points, and no one has more goals.
Even amid a chase to secure a wild-card spot in the Western Conference, the Blues could likely benefit by inserting Snuggerud into a top-nine role out of the gate. Shifting Zachary Bolduc from right to left wing while bumping underperforming Mathieu Joseph (4-9–13 in 55 GP) down the lineup creates an opening for Snuggerud on the third line with Bolduc and Oskar Sundqvist, giving the red-hot Blues an extra offensive weapon for the final few games of the season. On the heels of eight straight victories, St. Louis’ playoff chances are up to 73.1%, per MoneyPuck. They also have a 20.4% chance of passing the Wild for the first wild-card spot.
Snuggerud will have his presumably bonus-laden ELC run through the 2026-27 campaign, making him a restricted free agent upon expiry. They’ll also have key young forwards Dvorsky and Jake Neighbours in need of new deals that summer, so that’s a potential cap crunch to look out for down the line, with veteran goalie Jordan Binnington‘s deal also set to expire in 2027.
Image courtesy of Imagn Images.
Brad Marchand To Debut For Panthers Friday
March 28: Marchand will make his Panthers debut tonight, Maurice confirmed (via Olive).
March 26: One of the most notable trade deadline additions has yet to debut with his new team. When the Panthers made a last-second move to acquire Bruins star winger Brad Marchand on March 7, the Boston captain was nursing an upper-body injury sustained the weekend prior. He’s been occasionally practicing with his new team as he nears a return to play, which Florida head coach Paul Maurice said could be Friday’s game against Utah (via the team’s Jameson Olive).
It’s not a set deal, and there won’t be a transaction prefacing it as Marchand isn’t on injured reserve. He last played on March 1, when a hit from Penguins defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph sent him awkwardly into the boards and then to the locker room.
Before the injury and subsequent trade, Marchand had his worst offensive campaign in a decade. Of course, the ever-consistent winger was still on pace for a respectable 63 points, not a massive drop-off from last year’s 67 and almost to be expected given Boston’s general offensive struggles this season. He’s still a bona fide top-six forward, especially on a Florida team that’s had to deploy names like depth pivot Jesper Boqvist and rookie Mackie Samoskevich in second-line roles as of late with Marchand and Matthew Tkachuk on the shelf. Whether he gets a look on the top line with Aleksander Barkov remains to be seen, but at the very least, he should slot in as the Cats’ second-line left wing alongside Sam Bennett – a duo of pests that will likely land Tkachuk on the right side when he’s ready to return.
Some good news on the injury front is a welcome change of pace for the Panthers, who’ve also had their blue line decimated by a suspension to Aaron Ekblad and an injury to Dmitry Kulikov. They’ve gone 3-4-0 in their last seven as a result, dropping back into a tie with the Maple Leafs for first place in the Atlantic Division – a tiebreaker that Toronto currently holds with four more wins in regulation and overtime. They’re scoring 2.29 goals per game over that stretch, far below their season average of 3.23.
Flyers Assign Jett Luchanko To AHL
The Flyers announced Thursday that they’ve assigned top center prospect Jett Luchanko to AHL Lehigh Valley to finish the season. His major junior campaign with the Guelph Storm of the Ontario Hockey League is over after they failed to qualify for the playoffs.
Selected 13th overall in last year’s draft, Luchanko was a surprise inclusion on Philadelphia’s opening night roster after a strong training camp. He appeared in four of Philly’s first five games of the season, going without a point and posting a minus-three rating. The 18-year-old did well in the dot for such a young player, winning 17 of 37 draws (45.9 FO%), but didn’t have good possession impacts at even strength (39.5 CF%, 43.8 xGF%).
Clearly in need of more development time, the Flyers’ only option was to return Luchanko to juniors. He won’t be eligible for a full-time AHL assignment, at least while the OHL season is going on, until the 2026-27 season. The 5’11” righty put up a solid performance captaining a conference-worst Guelph squad, posting 21-35–56 in 46 games to lead the team in points per game. He posted a minus-three rating that stands out in a good way on a team with a -75 goal differential and also scored once in five games for Canada at the World Juniors.
Luchanko is the No. 2 prospect in the Flyers’ system and the 50th-ranked prospect in the NHL, according to Scott Wheeler of The Athletic. He’ll get his first taste of minor-league hockey over the coming weeks before looking to repeat a strong camp performance en route to cracking the Flyers’ opening night roster for a second time in 2025-26.
Blackhawks To Recall Kevin Korchinski
The Blackhawks are calling up top left-handed defense prospect Kevin Korchinski from AHL Rockford, reports Scott Powers of The Athletic. The seventh overall pick of the 2022 draft could make his first NHL appearance in three months tomorrow night against the Golden Knights.
Korchinski joins a Chicago blue line that boasted just one defender over the age of 23 in its last outing, with veterans T.J. Brodie (healthy) and Alec Martinez (upper body) not dressed. They’ve recently brought up top right-shot prospect Artyom Levshunov, the 2024 second-overall pick. That high-powered duo joins other young names like Louis Crevier, Ethan Del Mastro, and Wyatt Kaiser, who have seen in-season promotions, as the Blackhawks evaluate which of them could appear on their opening night roster next fall.
Unlike Levshunov, Korchinski isn’t a rookie. The 20-year-old was a full-timer on Chicago’s blue line last year but understandably struggled without much support. After being limited to 5-10–15 with a -39 rating in 76 games in 2023-24, the Blackhawks deemed it best for his long-term development to spend more time down a level in Rockford. The IceHogs aren’t the strongest club offensively, producing 2.87 goals per game, and that’s reflected in the team’s stars’ semi-conservative point totals. Korchinski still leads their blue line with 3-24–27 in 54 games, but he’s still behind the curve defensively as he adjusts to professional hockey. His -17 rating is the worst on the team.
However, his upside always primarily stemmed from his skating, offensive involvement, and power-play versatility. He ranks third among Chicago prospects and 28th overall on Scott Wheeler of The Athletic’s most recent ranking of league prospects. While there remains concern about his defensive-zone decision-making, he’s a good stick-checker that could make him an effective transition defender – once the rest of the Blackhawks’ roster is filled out enough to play better system-oriented hockey.
In nine NHL games this season, coming on a December recall, Korchinski went without a point and logged a minus-five rating while seeing 16:46 of ice time per game. He controlled 46.6% of shot attempts and 50% of expected goals at even strength, however, both notable improvements on last year’s possession numbers (44.4 CF%, 40.4 xGF%).
Korchinski, a World Juniors gold medalist with Canada in 2023, still has one year remaining on his entry-level contract and will be a restricted free agent in 2026. He’s under team control for at least five seasons beyond this one and won’t be arbitration-eligible until he logs four seasons with at least 10 NHL games.
Image courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports.
Philadelphia Flyers Fire John Tortorella
After nearly three years behind the bench, John Tortorella is no longer the head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers announced they’ve relieved Tortorella of head coaching duties and named associate coach Brad Shaw the interim head coach for the remaining schedule.
In the statement, Flyers’ General Manager Daniel Brière said, “Today I made the very difficult decision to move on from John as our head coach. John played a vital role in our rebuild. He set a standard of play and re-established what it means to be a Philadelphia Flyer. John’s passion on the bench was only equaled by his charitable work in our community. As we move into the next chapter of this rebuild, I felt this was the best for our team to move forward. I’d like to thank John for his tireless work and commitment to the Flyers.”
It’s a bold yet unsurprising move from Brière. From most statements, the Flyers’ front office had honest expectations for the team heading into the 2024-25 season, and even those haven’t been met. The biggest tell that a change behind the bench was incoming was Tortorella’s comments after Philadelphia’s embarrassing defeat against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday.
Tortorella was quoted saying, “This falls on me. I’m not really interested in learning how to coach in this type of season, where we’re at right now. But I have to do a better job. So this falls on me, getting the team prepared to play the proper way until we get to the end.” 
He attempted to smooth over the sentence in the same statement; however, Tortorella’s statement that he’s uninterested in learning how to coach in ‘this type of season’ is indicative of the duress he was under through March. Philadelphia performed relatively well through the first five months of the season with a 26-26-8 record through 60 games, but the bottom has completely fallen out from underneath them.
Since the calendar turned to March, the Flyers have played 13 games but only won two. Opposing teams are outscoring them by a margin of 29, and they haven’t scored a powerplay goal despite having 31 opportunities to do so. Additionally, the team’s penalty kill operated at a 69.6% rate, which would only be higher than the Detroit Red Wings if that were extrapolated over the entire campaign. Surprisingly, the part that may sting the most for Philadelphia is that they largely controlled play at even strength with a 50.5% CorsiFor% through the month.
The blame can never be placed at the feet of one man, especially in a team sport. Still, a change had to be made after the wheels completely fell off the season. Surprisingly, Philadelphia didn’t wait until the end of the regular season to terminate Tortorella. The veteran coach’s comments from the other night may have been the final nail in the coffin for the Flyers’ management. Tortorella ends his tenure behind Philadelphia’s bench with a 97-107-33 record in 237 games.
Meanwhile, Shaw earns his second stint as a head coach in the National Hockey League for the first time since the 2005-06 season when he replaced Steve Stirling behind the bench for the New York Islanders. Shaw was hired as the Flyers’ associate coach in 2022-23, his second stint on Tortorella’s staff since their time with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
There’s little expectation that Shaw will remain as Philadelphia’s head coach beyond this season. Still, the organization will do their due diligence during the hiring process, and Shaw’s hat may be in the ring. If he doesn’t remain with the team beyond the current campaign, Shaw will only serve 9 games as the Flyers’ head coach.
Image courtesy of James Carey Lauder-Imagn Images.