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Bruins’ Ty Gallagher Signs Two-Year AHL Deal

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The Bruins are slated to lose 2021 seventh-round pick Ty Gallagher’s signing rights on Aug. 15, but he’ll be staying in the organization anyways. He’s inked a two-year deal with AHL Providence starting next season, the Boston Herald’s Steve Conroy reports. He’ll finish the year with the P-Bruins on a tryout before his deal goes into effect for 2025-26.

The deal allows Gallagher to get reps in the Bruins organization without Boston having to use a contract slot on him, although it doesn’t prevent him from signing elsewhere if another NHL team comes calling. The 22-year-old defenseman spent three seasons at Boston University before transferring to Colorado College for his senior season. The move westward proved astute for the offensively-inclined rearguard, who erupted for 9-17–26 in 37 games after recording just five assists at BU last year.

A Michigan native, Gallagher checked in as the No. 10 prospect in the Bruins’ relatively weak pool earlier this season in Scott Wheeler of The Athletic’s overview. Only two defensemen, both already in Providence, were ranked ahead of him in Frédéric Brunet (No. 7) and Jackson Edward (No. 8), so it’s a tad surprising to see Boston hesitant to dole out an entry-level contract at this stage to retain his NHL rights. The Bruins only have 22 of 50 contract slots used for next season, with 13 pending RFAs in the organization.

Gallagher will now try to work his way up the organizational ladder to pursue his first NHL contract. He totaled 17-51–68 and a +37 rating in 148 NCAA games with BU and CC.

Avalanche’s Josh Manson Out Three To Four Weeks

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March 19: Manson carries a three-to-four-week timeline for his return, Bednar told Jesse Montano of Guerilla Sports today. That puts him back in the lineup during the final week of the regular season.

March 17: Avalanche defenseman Josh Manson has already missed one game with an upper-body injury and will remain sidelined for a couple of weeks at least, head coach Jared Bednar told reporters following yesterday’s win over the Stars (via Meghan Angley of Guerilla Sports).

Manson left the game during the second period of Friday’s win in Calgary, although it’s unclear when he sustained the injury. It’s similarly unclear whether it’s linked to the upper-body issue that held him out of the lineup for 12 games earlier in the season.

Acquired from the Ducks at the 2022 trade deadline, Manson immediately factored in as a key depth presence on the Colorado blue line en route to their Stanley Cup win that year. The physical 6’3″ righty landed a four-year, $18MM extension that summer to remain in Denver, but his time with the Avs since has been marred by injuries.

Since the 2022-23 campaign, his first full season in Colorado, Manson has made 151 of 232 possible regular-season appearances – healthy enough to play just 65% of the time. He stayed healthy last year, skating in 70-plus games for the fifth time in his 11-year career, but missed most of 2022-23 with a lower-body injury and nearly 30% of Colorado’s 2024-25 schedule with varying injuries.

In 48 games this season, the 33-year-old has 1-14–15 with a minus-six rating. He’s averaged 18:02 per game, his highest usage since arriving in Denver. His 105 hits lead Colorado defenders despite his extended absences, but he’s been one of the Avs’ worst two-way players with a -4.8 relative CF% and a team-worst -7.7 expected rating at even strength.

The Avs don’t have any other injuries on their blue line right now, but their right-side depth remains a point of weakness even after an active trade deadline. Without Manson, it’s depth pieces Erik Johnson and Sam Malinski manning second- and third-pairing duties behind superstar Cale Makar.

Panthers’ Dmitry Kulikov Out Week-To-Week

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Panthers defenseman Dmitry Kulikov is out week-to-week with the upper-body injury he sustained in Sunday’s outing against the Islanders, head coach Paul Maurice said today (via the team’s Jameson Olive). He’s not expected to miss the remainder of the regular season, however.

Kulikov left the game in the first period after awkwardly twisting while trying to hit Islanders winger Anthony Duclair in the neutral zone. He was favoring his right forearm as he left the ice.

A trip to IR doesn’t seem likely at this stage of the season with no roster limits in effect, but he should be expected to miss Florida’s five remaining games in March at the very least. The Panthers’ final game of the regular season is a potentially key playoff positioning matchup against the Lightning on April 15, so his return timeline is likely in the two-to-three-week range rather than the one-month area.

Nonetheless, the injury couldn’t come at a worse time for Florida. They’re already without top right-shot rearguard Aaron Ekblad for the rest of the regular season and two playoff games after he was suspended for using performance-enhancing substances, and their odds of winning the Atlantic Division have slipped to 48% after back-to-back losses to the Canadiens and Islanders over the weekend. Florida also has a more difficult remaining schedule (.554) than their competitors for the crown, the Lightning (.543) and Maple Leafs (.535), per Tankathon.

Kulikov is no stranger to injuries, only managing 70-plus games six times in his 16-year NHL career. He’d been mostly healthy since rejoining the Cats for his second stint in South Florida in the summer of 2023, though, only missing one game due to injury and another two due to suspension.

The 34-year-old played a bottom-pairing role in last season’s Stanley Cup win, but he’s seen his minutes elevated this year after the club lost Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Brandon Montour to unrestricted free agency. Averaging over 19 minutes per night, the stay-at-home Kulikov has 4-9–13 with a +13 rating in 68 games. He ranks third on the team with 70 blocked shots and leads Florida defenders with 110 hits. He inked a four-year, $4.6MM extension last summer that will likely see him finish his career in Sunrise.

Nate Schmidt elevated into Kulikov’s second-pairing role alongside Niko Mikkola in practice today, per Olive. Tobias Björnfot will draw into the lineup tomorrow against the Blue Jackets after being recalled yesterday. There’s now even more pressure on Seth Jones, who has just one assist and a minus-four rating in seven games since being acquired from the Blackhawks, to improve his play with two key defensemen sidelined.

League Notes: All-Star Game, CBA, Draft, Overtime, Rules, Playoff Format

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While there won’t be a repeat of the 4 Nations Face-Off next year, the tournament’s success has been enough to change how the league will use its winter break. There was initially expected to be a 2026 All-Star Game in the leadup to the Winter Olympics, but that won’t be the case – at least in its traditional form, league commissioner Gary Bettman told reporters today (including Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff). The Islanders will still be hosting some sort of event as initially planned, but whether it’s a revamped ASG format or an entirely different event remains to be seen.

More updates from Bettman today:

  • Discussions with the NHLPA on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement will commence the week of April 1, Eric Engels of Sportsnet relays. Negotiations with PA executive director Marty Walsh are expected to be smooth, avoiding the third work stoppage of the century. The league’s and NHLPA’s confidence in ratifying a new CBA quickly was underscored by their rather unprecedented move in January to release salary cap projections three years out. The current CBA, ratified in 2013 and extended in 2020, is set to expire on Sep. 15, 2026.
  • Bettman is “not a fan” of league GMs voting in favor of a decentralized draft format for 2025, per Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. This year’s run will be hosted by the Kings, but not at Crypto.com Arena – instead in the 7,100-seat Peacock Theater, while league front offices will conduct their business remotely. Top prospects will still be at the event, but picks will likely be read out by the commissioner instead, as GMs won’t be present. The league may move back to its usual draft format with everyone on the floor for 2026.
  • He’s also not enthused with the idea of extending 3-on-3 overtime past its current five-minute length, according to Seravalli. 10-minute 3-on-3 at the 4 Nations round-robin games was viewed as a test run for extending the OT period and having fewer games end in shootouts, but concerns over the deterioration of ice conditions and “additional wear and tear” on players – a few of which expressed their concerns following the tournament – remain paramount. In that vein, Friedman relays that no rule changes were proposed at this weekend’s GM meetings in Florida.
  • Lastly, there’s still no appetite from the league to alter the current playoff format, per Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic. A large contingent of fans and a few players have expressed support for ditching the wild-card system and returning to a one-through-eight conferenced-based seeding approach, but the divisional brackets are likely here to stay for the foreseeable future.

2025-26 Season To Begin On October 7

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The 2025-26 regular season will begin on Tuesday, October 7, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said today. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff was among the reporters who conveyed the news. With no October Global Series games planned at present, that’s three days later than last year’s season-opener, when the Devils and Sabres opened the year in Czechia on Oct. 4.

The COVID-19 pandemic notwithstanding, the regular season began on the first Wednesday of October since the 2004-05 lockout. Since the league signed its landmark television deals with ESPN and Turner Sports (TNT/TBS) in 2021, the season start date has shifted to the second Tuesday of the month with a double- or triple-header on the former network. Technically, the second Tuesday in October this year falls on the 14th since the month begins on a Wednesday, so the schedule shifts earlier.

This isn’t expected to mean a shorter preseason schedule, something many in the sport have expressed a desire for over the past few years with how late into June the Stanley Cup Final is now extending. That’s a CBA-mandated issue, meaning any change in that routine must wait until 2026-27 when the next agreement will be in place.

In some recent years, the regular season has technically begun before that ESPN Tuesday coverage with overseas games – similar to MLB’s Tokyo Series taking place during Spring Training. That appears to be an every-other-year event, though, with the league now foregoing early-October Global Series games in 2021, 2023, and 2025.

Canadiens Sign Lucas Condotta To Two-Year Extension

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The Canadiens agreed to a two-year, two-way contract extension with Lucas Condotta on Wednesday, according to a team release. This is his third contract signed with the Canadiens organization. His deal will earn him $350K in the minors each season with a $400K guarantee, accompanied by the league-minimum $775K NHL salary, per PuckPedia.

Condotta, now 27, began his professional career when the Habs signed him to an entry-level contract out of UMass-Lowell in 2022. The center made his NHL debut the following season, scoring his first of two career goals in a loss to the Bruins at the tail end of the 2022-23 campaign. He’s appeared sparingly for Montreal since then, totaling 11 career games, including a career-high seven appearances in 2024-25.

The 6’1″, 218-lb pivot has thus spent most of his professional career with the AHL’s Laval Rocket, where he now holds the captaincy. A checking forward with decent secondary offense, he has 27-47–74 in 194 career minor-league games with 164 PIMs and a plus-four rating. His goal-scoring has steadily declined over the past few years, dropping from 16 in 72 AHL games in 2022-23 all the way down to just three tallies in 50 games this year.

He’ll stick around in the organization for the 2025-26 and 2026-27 campaigns as a leadership fixture on the farm as the Canadiens continue to develop and graduate their prospects from Laval. Previously a pending unrestricted free agent, he’ll now need to wait two more years to test the open market.

Atlantic Notes: Domi, Jensen, Guhle

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Toronto Maple Leaf head coach Craig Berube stated today that forward Max Domi has taken his game to “another level,” per The Hockey News Toronto’s Nick Barden.

While Domi has struggled this season to the tune of 28 points in 59 games, he has shown signs of offensive improvement of late. Since March 1, Domi has recorded five points in eight games. This pairs with his usual tenacity, hitting prowess, and solid 51.2 faceoff percentage on the season.

Aided by his improved play, Toronto’s third line of Domi, Bobby McMann, and Nick Robertson are beginning to click as the playoffs loom. The three combined for seven points in Monday’s game against the Flames.

Domi, a veteran of 720 games, has scored 445 points in his career, including 47 points over 80 games last season. He has added 26 points in 50 career playoff games. Domi has three years left on his contract and comes with a $3.75 MM AAV, so his improved play is a welcomed sight for the Maple Leafs as they look ahead to this year’s playoffs and beyond.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • The Senators’ Nick Jensen missed his second straight game tonight due to a lower body injury, per The Athletic’s Julian McKenzie. The 34-year-old defender has been a key figure in his first season in Ottawa, posting 19 points and a plus-17 rating. He averages a hefty 20:20 average ice time per game and has recorded 74 blocked shots. Ottawa received Jensen and a 2026 third-round pick in a trade with the Capitals that saw defenseman Jakob Chychrun head to Washington. Jensen’s availability will be key to Ottawa as they fight for a place in the playoffs down the stretch run. Prior to tonight’s 6-3 loss to against the Canadians, the Senators were winners of their last six games and find themselves in the first wild card spot in the east.
  • Canadiens defenseman Kaiden Guhle skated prior to the team’s practice today, per TSN. The 23-year-old underwent surgery for a lacerated quadriceps muscle in late January. He returned to skating on March 7, but he remains out indefinitely. In 44 games on the season, he recorded 14 points, 100 blocked shots, and 67 hits.

Metropolitan Notes: Strome, Fitzgerald, Islander Defenders

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Center Dylan Strome is in the lineup tonight after being questionable to play due to sickness, per a team announcement. He was a full participant in today’s morning skate and is centering the team’s top line between Alex Ovechkin and Tom Wilson.

Despite feeling under the weather, Strome scored Washington’s first goal of the game tonight against the Red Wings. His availability is key for the Capitals as they continue their run towards the top seed in the eastern conference. Strome has been instrumental to the team’s success, registering 65 points in 67 games played. He is set to break his career high of 67 points in a season, which he recorded just last year.

In his last three seasons, he has recorded 71 goals and 197 points and has assisted on many Ovechkin’s goals as the Russian sniper nears the all-time mark.

Elsewhere in the Metro:

  • Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald discussed a scary situation that occurred to his son with his fellow general managers at their annual meetings, per an NHL release. Fitzgerald’s son, Casey Fitzgerald, a defender with Hartford of the AHL, sustained a serious cut to his neck from a skate blade in a game against Providence on Dec. 28. Casey was wearing a neck guard, which is mandated by the AHL, but the skate hit above the guard, and it was very close to being a life-threatening situation. The elder Fitzgerald approved of photos being shown of the wound, acknowledging the photos could serve as a reminder to the seriousness of these gruesome injuries. While the AHL requires cut-resistant equipment, the NHL currently doesn’t have these provisions in place. While Fitzgerald would like to see this change, he is also looking toward even better advancements in protective equipment. He noted that had the skate hit his son’s neck guard, it wouldn’t have prevented the cut from taking place in that particular situation. But better preventative measures, including wider neck straps, could help prevent serious cuts.
  • The Islanders’ Adam Pelech is playing tonight against the Penguins, while defenders Alexander Romanov and Adam Boqvist both missed the contest due to illness, per a team announcement. Pelech was a full participant in the Islanders morning skate on Tuesday after missing Sunday’s contest against the Florida Panthers with a lower-body injury. Coach Patrick Roy noted his return as a huge support for the team. Pelech has recorded 17 assists, 65 blocked shots, and 68 hits through 45 games on the season. With Romanov and Boqvist out, defender Tony DeAngelo is paired with Pelech, and veteran Mike Reilly cracked the lineup for just the 13th time this season.

Penguins And Predators To Face-Off In 2025 Global Series

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The Pittsburgh Penguins will return to Stockholm next season to face-off against the Nashville Predators in the 2025 NHL Global Series in Sweden, per an NHL announcement.

The games are slated for Nov. 14 and Nov. 16 and will be played at Avicii Arena. The Penguins are returning to Sweden after taking part in the 2008 NHL Premiere Series. It will represent the second time leaders Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang will take part in games overseas.

The series will represent a homecoming for players on both sides. For the Penguins, Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson, as well as 30-goal winger Rickard Rakell will participate (barring injury of course), while the Peds will be represented by forward Filip Forsberg and defenders Adam Wilsby and Andreas Englund.

The NHL Global Series, started in 2017 in games between the Ottawa Senators and Colorado Avalanche in Stockholm, continues a long history of international competition for NHLers. This includes the 1938 European Tour between Red Wings and Canadians (a seven-game series that the Canadians won 4-3), the 1979–80 Super Series between Russian teams and NHL squads, and most recently the NHL Premiere Series, which ran from 2007 to 2011.

Rakell and Karlsson both expressed their excitement in playing in the series. Karlsson said the series will be a “great experience” and noted how fun it will be to play before family and friends in his home country. There is speculation surrounding Karlsson’s long-term future in Pittsburgh, so it’s not exactly a certainty he’ll be a Penguin next November.

Swedish-born Predators also expressed their excitement surrounding the series, including Forsberg who noted, “It’s obviously going to be a great time, a great opportunity for me.”

While it’s the first time Nashville will play in Sweden, it’s the organization’s third international trip. They played the Sharks in the 2022 Global Series in Prague, as well as a series against Pittsburgh at the GAME One Japan series in 2000.

In the 2008 Global Series, the Penguins split two games with the Senators. In those games, Crosby registered two assists, Malkin had a goal and an assist, and Letang registered nearly 50 minutes of total ice time between the two contests.

Wild Recall Liam Ohgren Under Emergency Conditions

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The Minnesota Wild have recalled top wing prospect Liam Ohgren under emergency conditions. The move comes after an unnamed member of the Wild fell sick, per Michael Russo of The Athletic. Forward Marcus Foligno is also facing a day-to-day absence and sat out of Monday’s game. Ohgren will be eligible to play should both Foligno and the ill Wild player both need to sit out. The Wild’s next game comes against Seattle on Wednesday.

This move returns Ohgren to the NHL roster after 11 days, and four games, in the minor leagues. He didn’t manage any scoring in his first two games back in the minors, but amassed two goals and five points in a pair of games this weekend. That scoring brought Ohgren up to 28 points, split evenly, in 29 AHL games this season. He is the only Iowa Wild skater still rivaling point-per-game scoring, and ranks sixth on the team in total points despite playing fewer games than Iowa forward with more than 10 points.

Despite hot scoring in the minors, Ohgren still hasn’t found his groove at the NHL level. He has just four points in 23 games with Minnesota this season, adding to his two points in four NHL games last year. The Wild have moved Ohgren around the bottom-six to try and spark his scoring, though he’s averaged just 11:06 in ice time through the full season.

This call-up will give Ohgren another chance to spark his NHL scoring after a hot weekend in the minor leagues. He’ll need specific circumstances to prompt a return to the Minnesota lineup, including another absence for lineup fixture Foligno – who’s scored 22 points in 67 games from a third-line role this season. Ohgren will likely absorb most of Foligno’s minutes, should he get to play.

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