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Evening Notes: Evangelista, Kleven, Dumais, Hurricanes

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While it appears that the Predators and Luke Evangelista have agreed that the winger’s next contract will be for two years, things don’t appear to be going well in terms of discussing money.  TSN’s Darren Dreger reports (Twitter link) that the two sides are still well apart on the financial side, so much so that the 23-year-old has left Nashville and is returning to Canada to train on his own while waiting for a contract to be hammered out.  Evangelista has two straight years of more than 30 points under his belt and is averaging exactly half a point per game in 172 career NHL appearances.  Despite that being a more concrete track record than many players have coming off their entry-level pacts, the two sides don’t appear to be close to an agreement just yet.

More from around the NHL:

  • Senators defenseman Tyler Kleven left today’s exhibition game against Toronto in the third period with an undisclosed injury after crashing into the boards. Postgame, head coach Travis Green told reporters including Sportsnet’s Alex Adams (Twitter link) that there was no immediate information available about the injury.  Kleven was a regular on Ottawa’s third pairing last season, putting up 10 points, 97 blocks, and 105 hits in 79 outings while also getting into all six playoff contests.
  • Blue Jackets prospect Jordan Dumais was injured in the final game of their rookie tournament last weekend and hasn’t been on the ice since. Aaron Portzline of The Athletic relays (subscription link) that the winger is listed as day-to-day with a hip flexor.  Dumais dealt with hip issues in 2024, undergoing surgery early that year and was limited to just 21 games with AHL Cleveland last season where he managed a respectable four goals and seven assists.
  • The Hurricanes may hold defensemen Jaccob Slavin and Jalen Chatfield out of all of their preseason games, relays team reporter Walt Ruff (Twitter link). Head coach Rod Brind’Amour relayed that this would be merely as a precaution but generally speaking, this would only be done if the player is nursing a minor injury.  Slavin is a well-established top-pairing player on Carolina’s back end while Chatfield quietly averaged nearly 19 minutes per game last season.

PHR Mailbag: CBA, Playoffs, Kaprizov, Camp Surprises, Hughes Brothers

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Topics in this edition of the PHR Mailbag include breaking down one of the new CBA rule changes, fitting the Hughes brothers on the same team, and more.  If your question doesn’t appear here, check back in next weekend’s column.

Gmm8811: I thought I saw somewhere that players that go on and clear waivers have to actually play at least one game with their AHL affiliate. Did I hear that correctly? Is that starting this year? Would you expand on that info, please? Do you foresee any drawbacks to that? Looking forward to the new season.

This isn’t actually a waiver-specific rule.  A player can clear waivers and not be sent down while remaining eligible to play for their team.  That doesn’t happen often but it does happen, especially around the trade deadline.

What the rule you’re mentioning speaks to is paper transactions.  Section 30 of the new CBA MOU adds a blurb to Section 13.12 of the CBA that basically says that a player who is sent to the minors needs to actually report to the minors and play in at least one game.  The exact rule is as follows:

A Player who has been Loaned to a minor league club, and was not credited with a day pursuant to (h) above for one (1) or more days since the Loan, must actually report to the club and play in one (1) or more games with such minor league club before he is eligible for Recall. Not withstanding the foregoing, a Goaltender on Loan who has played less than the required one (1) game may be Recalled if his NHL Club would otherwise have less than two Goaltenders available to dress in the Club’s next game.

This is one of the changes that the league and the NHLPA agreed would come into effect for the upcoming season.  As we saw in recent years, many teams would ‘paper’ a player to the minors on an off day, then recall him the following day to play in an NHL game.  The player never actually reported to the minors but didn’t receive his NHL salary for the day, giving the team a few thousand dollars extra in cap space.  This rule is designed to deter teams from doing this.  Now, if a team sends a player down to the minors (whether they cleared waivers or are waiver-exempt), they actually have to report to that team and play in a game before they can be brought back up.  Notably, there is a rewrite to another subsection in there that effectively says if an emergency recall situation presents itself (someone else gets hurt putting the team below the required minimum number of skaters), then the recently-assigned player can be recalled before actually playing in an AHL game.

I doubt this will actually change much, however.  Teams that need space are still going to churn their roster, it’s just going to involve multiple players now instead of one.  Player A gets sent down, Player B is recalled.  Player B gets sent down, Player A is recalled and so forth.  If waiver exemption is exhausted, then start with Player C and maybe Player D if needed (or re-waive Players A and B to give them another 30-day exemption window).  So now, the player who was getting papered will probably lose out on NHL money and ice time since the scheme, so to speak, will now require multiple players to pull off which will cause a different type of grumbling.  That’s the drawback that comes to mind.

It’ll stop Carolina from papering Jackson Blake down (something that probably happened 15 or more times last season despite the fact he played in 80 NHL games) but probably won’t change much else.

frozenaquatic: Hi! Thanks for doing these. Getting out the crystal ball: Are there any teams you think will underperform this year? Who is a shocking team that we could see having problems and dropping out of the playoffs?

For quick reference, I had a question last column about four teams missing and four teams making the playoffs, one set per division.  Rather than rehashing that out, you can read through my picks here.

Based on the four miss teams in there, the one that best fits this question would be Washington.  Montreal missing wouldn’t be too shocking, neither would Minnesota, and while Los Angeles would certainly be a surprise (and I don’t think they’re missing the playoffs), that wouldn’t be as shocking as a reigning Conference winner missing the postseason.

A lot went wrong for Washington in 2023-24 and just about everything went right last year.  They had several players have career years, the cheapest goalie tandem gave them above-average play, and some typical underachievers had some bounce-back efforts.  If some of those gains are lost, it’s plausible that they could be on the outside looking in.

In terms of an underperformer who still makes it, I’d pick Florida.  The way they struggled down the stretch without Matthew Tkachuk was telling and they’ll be without him for quite a while to start the year.  Between that and two long playoff runs, I could see them landing in a Wild Card spot which would be a bit of a disappointment for them.

Johnny Z: What would it take to get Kirill Kaprizov to be a Wing? Yes, I realize the Wings are not a contender, but getting KK would be a big step towards the prize.

Zakis: To piggyback off Johnny Z, what would realistic packages be for Kaprizov for any team in two scenarios: 1) Kaprizov doesn’t sign an extension.

2) He agrees to a sign and trade.

Notwithstanding the unlikelihood of Detroit happening, the situation of how this happens is important to actually answer this question.  Zakis provides two scenarios but I think it’s actually three.  Is it as a straight rental?  If not, Detroit one of the only teams he’d sign with (or one of the only teams offering the contract he wants)?  Or, is there a bidding war for his services in a sign-and-trade with eight to ten teams realistically in the mix?  All of those would yield different-looking returns.  Let’s try to hypothesize each one, using a Detroit-specific answer and a general one to cover Zakis’ follow-up query.

1) In a pure rental scenario, you’re probably looking at two key components.  One is a first-round pick, the other is a key youngster.  Now, this isn’t like the Brock Nelson trade where the young forward was a recent first-rounder (Calum Ritchie).  For someone at Kaprizov’s level and to win a bidding war as a rental (without an extension, more teams can get involved), that other piece is going to hurt.  My initial thought was Marco Kasper and if he’s a third center at the time of the trade, that still could be the case.  If Nate Danielson is having a big year and sees some NHL action, perhaps he’d fit as well.  Detroit shouldn’t need salary retention but if a different acquiring team does, add a second-round pick (or maybe a third, depending on when the deal happens) to the price.

2) If Kaprizov says there’s only one or two teams he’d sign an extension with, Detroit loses a lot of leverage.  They still could probably get the above with the extension balancing out the reduced leverage but there won’t be as much of an add as there should be.  Speculatively, the acquiring team would want to offset the money a bit.  For the Red Wings, that might be someone like J.T. Compher while in general, a top-six forward with a couple of years left fits.  Now, if you’re thinking that this feels really light, you’re right.  But history shows that if a player only has one destination in mind, it’s more of a fifty cents on the dollar type of return.  If you’re the acquiring team, this is the best-case scenario.

3) Now, if Kaprizov is willing to sign an extension with a bunch of teams, look out.  (This is Minnesota’s best-case scenario if they can’t re-sign him.)  Then, you’re looking at probably multiple core players, at least one first-rounder, and a top prospect.  Someone’s going to keep upping the ante and it’s going to hurt.  For the Red Wings, think along the lines of Lucas Raymond, Kasper, a first (or more), and someone like Trey Augustine.  Minnesota gets two core top-six players (Kasper should get there), cap flexibility as those two cost less than what Kaprizov will, and future assets to either keep or try to flip to add another replacement piece.

Now, having said all that, I still think Kaprizov eventually re-signs.  It might take slightly more than what they’ve offered or perhaps a shorter-term agreement compared to eight years but right now, I’d predict they get it done.

Schwa: Who’s an under-the-radar pick to surprise in camp and force their way onto a roster – PTO, long-time AHL, rookie??

PTO – I’ll go with Kevin Labanc here.  He’s coming off a season where he played pretty sparingly in Columbus and didn’t do a lot in limited minutes.  But he has shown top-six flashes in the past and the Hurricanes have had a knack for getting the most out of some of their back-of-roster pieces, even in limited roles.  There isn’t really a great spot for him (which would make him signing a bit of a surprise) but if he gets a deal, he might be able to contribute.

Long-Time AHL – I’m not sure how under the radar he is but Boston’s Matej Blumel is the first player I thought of when I saw this question.  He was a stellar performer in the minors the last three years with AHL Texas but barely got an NHL opportunity.  The Bruins gave him a one-way deal this summer, a sign they think he could do just that.  Alex Steeves, another Boston signing, could also fit the bill although he might have a bigger hill to climb.  I think he has more NHL upside than he got to show in several years with Toronto.

Rookie – Let’s go with Colorado’s Zakhar Bardakov.  A 2021 seventh-round pick in his third year of eligibility, he’s 24 and hasn’t seen the ice yet in North America.  However, he’s coming off his best performance with SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL and plays with some grit.  The Avs have built a deeper roster but there’s still room for some rookies to grab hold of a spot and Bardakov could step in and do just that.

pawtucket: There’s a lot of talk about the Hughes brothers wanting to play together. How, then, does a team (Devils?) tightrope the salary cap while having a $12MM Quinn, $8MM Jack, and $5MM Luke all needing to be signed around the same time (Quinn expires in two years, Jack in five, Luke maybe in five)?

First, I think you need to reset your number for Luke Hughes.  A five-year, $25MM offer isn’t going to get it done.  While that might be his desired term, the cost would still probably eclipse $7MM and if it’s a longer-term pact, an AAV above Jack’s will be needed.  For Quinn Hughes, that number might wind up a little light as well based on the increasing cap but it’s fair enough to use here.  I’m going to put Luke at $7.5MM and sort of split the difference between the two ranges earlier, meaning the trio would cost $27.5MM.

Short-term, that wouldn’t be hard for New Jersey to manage.  A top-line center and top defense pairing already costs more than $20MM on most teams and by the time 2027-28 rolls around, that shouldn’t be overly costly.  Dougie Hamilton will be on an expiring deal by then so he’d probably be movable, even if not for a great return.

But if they time up their contracts to be up when Jack’s deal expires in 2030, that could be a different story.  At that point, Quinn is still probably in that $12MM range (maybe $13MM), Jack Hughes could very well be at $13MM himself, and Luke could be touching double-digits as well.  (It’s so early in his career that this number could be quite light before long.)  Now you’re talking somewhere between probably $36MM and $40MM for three players.  By then, the league-wide cost for those three spots might be up around $30MM to $32MM so the gap is a bit higher but probably manageable.  It would come down to a team having enough expiring deals to offset those salaries or moving out some pieces to cover the difference but I don’t think it would be overly problematic to fit them in.

Photo courtesy of Nick Wosika-Imagn Images.

Snapshots: Zuccarello, Flames Power Play, Perfetti

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Veteran forward Mats Zuccarello has begun Minnesota Wild training camp limited to light activity due to an injury, the full nature of which currently remains undisclosed. The Athletic’s Michael Russo reported today that Zuccarello has an appointment on Monday that will “determine surgery vs no surgery,” according to Wild head coach John Hynes. Zuccarello is already slated to miss the start of the regular season per prior reporting from Russo, but depending on the medical opinion received tomorrow, the absence could conceivably extend quite a bit.

The loss of Zuccarello, 38, would be a major one for a Wild team entering a potentially franchise-altering regular season. Franchise face Kirill Kaprizov is a pending UFA and while the club has been vocal in its willingness to do pretty much anything in order to secure Kaprizov’s signature on an extension, Kaprizov has thus far appeared hesitant to commit the future of his playing prime to Minnesota. The best thing the Wild can do to convince Kaprizov is likely to win as much, and as early, as possible – something that will be made more difficult by any extended Zuccarello absence. Zuccarello scored 19 goals and 54 points in 69 games last season, and in his absence his lineup spot has been filled by 2022 first-rounder Liam Ohgren, who has reportedly had an impressive start to camp.

Some other notes from across the NHL:

  • TSN’s Salim Nadim Valji reported today that Calgary Flames 2024 first-round pick Matvei Gridin is currently taking reps on the club’s top power play unit, alongside MacKenzie Weegar, Connor Zary, Nazem Kadri, and Matt Coronato. While it’s unlikely that Gridin ultimately settles into that role in the immediate term, it does shed some light on how the organization might view Gridin’s long-term future. The 19-year-old Russian winger is a skilled offensive creator who scored 36 goals and 79 points in 56 games for the QMJHL’s Shawinigan Cataractes last season. He could end up a long-term power play weapon for the Flames if he can continue his development in 2025-26.
  • With Nikolaj Ehlers’ offseason departure, the Winnipeg Jets lost 24 goals and 63 points of production to the Carolina Hurricanes. One of the areas where Ehlers was particularly lethal was on the man advantage, and with his departure, a spot on the Jets’ top unit has opened up. The Athletic’s Murat Ates reports from Winnipeg training camp that young forward Cole Perfetti is “first in line” to replace Ehlers on the Jets’ top unit. Perfetti filled in for Ehlers on that unit when Ehlers was injured last season, so he should be able to hit the ground running. It’s a big year for Perfetti, who scored a career-high 50 points last season. He’s a pending restricted free agent and likely due for a notable raise from the $3.25MM cap hit he’s playing out his current deal on.

Training Camp Cuts: 9/21/25

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The preseason is officially underway today, and teams are constinuing to make cuts to whittle down their training camp roster. In this early stage, the cuts are typically younger players who get reassigned to their various junior or international clubs. We’ll keep tabs on today’s cuts here.  The remaining players can be found on our Training Camp Rosters page.

Ottawa Senators (per team announcement)

D Gabriel Eliasson
F Blake Vanek
D Eerik Wallenius

Vancouver Canucks (per team announcement)

F Josh Bloom (to Abbotsford, AHL)
F Jackson Kunz (to Abbotsford, AHL)
F Cooper Walker (to Abbotsford, AHL)
F Dino Kambeitz (to Abbotsford, AHL)
F Gabriel Chiarot (to Brampton, OHL)
F Riley Patterson (to Niagara, OHL)
G Alexei Medvedev (to London, OHL)
F Kieren Dervin (to Kingston, OHL)
D Zach Sandhu (released from ATO, to Oshawa, OHL)

Preseason Notes: Gibson, Daws, Blackhawks Injury Updates

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Despite trading a second-round pick and committing $6.4MM in cap space over the next two years in order to acquire veteran John Gibson, the Detroit Red Wings aren’t entering the 2025-26 season with firm plans in mind in terms of how they’ll allocate their goaltending starts. The Athletic’s Max Bultman relayed word from head coach Todd McLellan today who said about the team’s goaltending plans “We’re going to start by letting it play out,” adding “We’ll start the season and see where it takes us.”

McLellan specifically cited the possibility for injuries or one goalie having a hot streak as reasons for why trying to plan out a specific workload for his goaltenders would be “a pretty futile exercise.” Regardless of their plans at this stage, it’s clear the Red Wings’ position in net is considerably stronger than it was one year ago. Gibson is an accomplished veteran who, before Anaheim began its current rebuilding phase, could be counted amongst the league’s more reliable netminders, while Cam Talbot made it to the 2023-24 season’s All-Star game and posted a .913 save percentage across 54 games.

Some other notes as preseason begins in earnest around the NHL:

  • With veterans Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen firmly entrenched as the New Jersey Devils’ starting and backup netminders, respectively, young goalie Nico Daws has become one of the names to watch in the preseason. The 24-year-old Swiss goalie is no longer exempt from waivers, and looks highly likely to end up exposed to all 31 other NHL clubs at some point in the preseason. As a result, the 2020 third-round pick’s preseason performances are particularly notable as he’s likely to be watched closely as a waiver claim option by teams in need of a goalie. To that end, Daws hasn’t had the strongest start to his preseason – he was tagged for four goals against on just 13 shots in his debut preseason appearance against the New York Rangers. Daws had a .939 save percentage in six NHL appearances in 2024-25 and had an .894 across 21 games in 2023-24. He’s a pending RFA with an $812.5K cap hit.
  • The Athletic’s Scott Powers relayed the following injury updates from Chicago Blackhawks training camp – André Burakovsky was held out of practice due to a lower-body ailment, while Landon Slaggert and Brett Seney exited practice for undisclosed reasons. No further detail on the latter two players was provided, but head coach Jeff Blashill did indicate he “hoped to have more info on them tomorrow.” 23-year-old Slaggert in particular has a big opportunity ahead of him this training camp, as if he can manage to earn a spot next to Jason Dickinson on the team’s third line, he could find himself with the chance to play tough minutes against top competition in a shutdown capacity.

West Notes: Blues Forwards, Kraken Injuries, Dickinson

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While the NHL preseason is for most fans a low-stakes affair as the results of games don’t matter for the standings, they are often extremely high-stakes affairs for many of the players involved – many of whom are looking to secure a spot in the NHL for the upcoming season. The competition for limited roster spots is often fierce, and one of the fiercest appears to be playing out in St. Louis, where four forwards of varying experience and talent levels are competing for three roster spots. The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford indicated that PTO signee Milan Lucic, 2023 first-rounder Dalibor Dvorsky, and veterans Mathieu Joseph and Alexandre Texier are competing for a likely three roster spots between them.

Out of that group, the clear “odd one out” appears to be Lucic, who is playing in camp on a PTO. According to Rutherford, the Blues believe Lucic could help in a few specific areas they’d like to improve, namely “physicality and sticking up for teammates.” But Rutherford reports that Lucic’s start to camp has been “nondescript” and that those areas where he can make his mark aren’t really things that factor into a practice setting. With just four NHL games played since 2022-23, Lucic faces a steep uphill battle to win a roster spot, especially since Rutherford noted that two of his main competitors, Joseph and Texier, were “two of the more noticeable forwards” in the early portion of camp in St. Louis.

Some other notes from the Western Conference:

  • The Seattle Kraken issued injury updates to two players today: forward Jared McCann is listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury, while center Nathan Villeneuve will miss the rest of training camp with his own lower-body ailment. This development is particularly unfortunate for Villeneuve, 19, as he’s lost the ability to impress team brass in advance of his final season in the OHL. According to the Kraken’s official camp blog, Villeneuve “made a lasting impression” in last year’s preseason process before being cut, and now due to this injury he won’t have the opportunity to do that again in 2025. A 2024 second-round pick, Villeneuve scored 34 goals and 70 points in 57 games for the Sudbury Wolves last season.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks’ lineup plans for next season are beginning to take shape, and in particular it appears new head coach Jeff Blashill has firm plans for how he wants to deploy center Jason Dickinson in 2025-26. The Athletic’s Scott Powers reports that Blashill “thinks he can best utilize Dickinson as a third-line shutdown center,” adding that he plans on matching Dickinson’s line against opposing top lines. At the moment, Dickinson is centering veteran Ilya Mikheyev and 23-year-old Landon Slaggert, and if Blashill’s plans end up successful, the trio could be extremely helpful in taking some pressure off of top center and franchise face Connor Bedard. Dickinson enters 2025-26 as a pending UFA set to make $4.25MM against the cap.

Hall Of Fame Flyers Goalie Bernie Parent Passes Away At 80

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Legendary Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Bernie Parent has passed away at the age of 80. He was the first starting goaltender in Flyers history, and went on to accumulate one of the most decorated careers in NHL history. His accolades included back-to-back Stanley Cup wins, two Vezina Trophies, and two Conn Smyth ’Playoff MVP’ trophies. He was inducted into the Hall Of Fame in 1984, alongside Jacques Lemaire and Phil Esposito.

Parent’s prolific pro career didn’t began in Philadelphia. Instead, he joined the NHL as a member of the Boston Bruins in 1965 – and posted a disappointing .898 save percentage in 39 games of his rookie season. That poor showing pushed him to a backup role in 1966, and prompted Boston to leave Parent unprotected in the 1967 NHL Expansion Draft.

That decision set up Philadelphia to make what ended up a franchise-defining pick. They leaned on Parent in their first season of operations and he quickly proved worth the trust. He posted a .926 save percentage – fourth-best in the NHL – in his first 38 games as a Flyer, despite the team slipping to a 15-17-5 record when he was in net. Parent matched that performance with a .925 Sv% in 58 games the following year, and a .921 Sv% in 62 games the year after that. It was a phenomenal start to his time with the Flyers, though the team followed it up with the questionable decision to trade their star starting goaltender to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1971. In return, the Flyers landed a top-10 draft pick (used on Pierre Plante), backup goaltender Bruce Gamble, and middle-six center Mike Walton, who they flipped to the Boston Bruins.

The trade marked an interesting lull in Parent’s career. He spent two years with the Maple Leafs, recording a .915 Sv% through 65 total games, then spent one year with Philadelphia’s WHA club during the 1972-73 season – one of multiple NHL superstars who made the surprising change in leagues. On the other side of that decision, Parent decided to return to the Flyers for the 1973-74 season.

He returned to a club much stronger than the one he left behind. The club had earned the nickname “Broad Street Bullies” in the year prior, thanks to the aggressive and physical play of club legends Bobby Clarke, Dave Schultz, and Andre Dupont – to name a few. With the addition of Parent, the Flyers added a star goalie to that bruising bunch. That proved to be their missing piece, and the Flyers blazed to back-to-back Stanley Cup wins while leaning heavily on Parent. He posted a .932 Sv% through 73 games of the 1973-74 season, then returned for a .918 Sv% in 68 games of the 1974-75 campaign. In that mix, Parent also managed an incredible .933 Sv% in 17 playoff games in 1974; and a .924 Sv% in 15 playoff games in 1975. Both performances earned him MVP-recognition when Philadelphia went to lift their first, and only, Cup wins in franchise history.

Unfortunately, Parent’s career would peak with those seasons. He missed all but 11 games of the 1975-76 campaign due to a pinched nerve in his neck that required surgery. He’d recover well enough to suit up for 61 games in 1976-77, though his .899 Sv% showed sign for concern. He bounced back with a .912 in 49 games the next year, and maintained a handle on the starter’s net in 1978-79. But Parent’s career would come to a sudden, and tragic, end in 1979 when a stick got through the eyehole of his mask – causing hospitalization, temporary loss of sight, and permanent vision damage. He retired at the age of 34, and his injury would spark a league-wide shift to modern goalie helmets soon after.

Parent’s impact on Philadelphia hockey continued well after the end of his playing days. He served as the team’s goaltending coach through three scattered seasons, and mentored future Vezina Trophy-winners Ron Hextall and Pelle Lindbergh. His coaching career didn’t last for very long, but Parent stuck around the organization as an ’Ambassador of Hockey’ through the 2024-25 season.

Chants of “Bernie, Bernie, Bernie” echoed through The Spectrum at Parent’s peak, and continued to ring loud at every fan event he attended, even late in life. He was truly a legend of the sport, and perhaps thee defining piece in Philadelphia’s first few years in the league. He played through historic NHL moments, like the 1975 ’Fog Game’ against the Buffalo Sabres. For a time after his career, he would live on a yacht he named ’The French Connection’, after the legendary Sabres line he faced in that very game. That humor, his warm spirit, and his championing of sobriety and dedication will be remembered through the Flyers family.

Snapshots: Capitals, Schmidt, Buium, Celebrini

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Training camp updates are rolling in as many teams approach their first round of cuts. The most pertinent updates came for the Washington ahead of an early-morning scrimmage. Superstar Alex Ovechkin didn’t take the ice with the team as he continues to face a day-to-day, lower-body injury per Sammi Silber of The Hockey News. Silber also reported that forward Justin Sourdif and defenseman Martin Fehervary continue to not take contact during practice, and thus didn’t take part in Washington’s scrimmage.

None of Washington’s updates are cause for much concern. Ovechkin is expected to continue progressing towards a return, and be held out of action as a precaution. Ovechkin will return to his perennial role on top of Washington’s lineup when the regular season kicks off. Fehervary is also still on an expected track, continuing to work his way back from a torn meniscus suffered late last season. He underwent surgery on the knee during the off-season, but has since been unable to kick minor inflammation. Once that goes down, he’ll return to a solid role in Washington’s daily lineup. Sourdif was facing illness, and should work back to full speed after taking a few laps with the non-playing group on Sunday.

Other notes from around the NHL:

  • Utah Mammoth defenseman Nate Schmidt was absent from the team’s Saturday practice. He was designated as day-to-day due to maintenance by head coach Andre Tourigny, per Cole Bagley of KSL Sports. That designation makes Schmidt’s availability over the next few days difficult, though it doesn’t seem the Mammoth are concerned about the long-term availability of their summer signing. Schmidt played a bottom-pair role on the Stanley Cup-winning Florida Panthers last season, working his way up to 19 points in 80 games. He’ll likely fill a similar role in Utah, though brings the experience of a 741-game veteran and one-time Cup-winner to the NHL’s newest club.
  • Continuing the list of absences was top Minnesota Wild prospect Zeev Buium, who missed his third-consecutive practice on Sunday per Michael Russo of The Athletic. Russo pointed out that Buium did skate with Jonas Brodin before practice started. Again, Buium’s ailment isn’t expected to be a serious issue, head coach John Hynes told Sarah McLellan of Star Tribune Sports. Buium will be pushing for a starring role on the Wild roster this season, after playing the first four games of his NHL career in the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs. He recorded one assist and four penalty minutes in those outings. An extended absence will make a run to the NHL a bit tougher, but the one-time NCAA National Champion should have no problem convincing the Wild brass when he’s back to full health.
  • In a positive swing, San Jose Sharks star centerman Macklin Celebrini returned to the team’s practices after missing multiple days to illness, per Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News. Celebrini won’t take part in San Jose’s first preseason game, though he’ll otherwise be fully on track to return to the role of San Jose’s top forward when the season kicks off. Celebrini scored 63 points in 70 games as a rookie last season, marking a franchise record in San Jose.

Maple Leafs Camp Notes: Domi, Roy, Benoit

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The Toronto Maple Leafs received a wave of positive injury updates on Sunday morning. The good news kicked off when winger Max Domi stepped onto the ice for the first time in training camp, captured by TSN’s Mark Masters. Domi joined the Leafs’ non-playing group, indicating that he won’t be a part of the team’s first preseason game later in the day.

Domi has been dealing with a lower-body injury sustained during off-season training. The injury has been dubbed minor, with Domi designated as day-to-day, but its nonetheless become a focal point of camp as many expect Domi to take on a top-six role. With Sunday’s practice, he’ll take the first step towards vindicating those expectations – and break camp in a top-line wing role vacated by Mitch Marner earlier this summer. Domi scored eight goals and 33 points last season, though he also managed 47 points in his first year with the Leafs in 2023-24.

Other notes from Toronto’s camp:

  • Also returning to the practice sheet was recently-acquired forward Nicolas Roy, who sat out of the team’s Saturday skate with a lower-body injury, per Masters. Roy is another candidate for a growing role in the Toronto lineup, after being acquired as the sweetener in Toronto’s sign-and-trade of Marner with the Vegas Golden Knights. Roy scored 15 goals and 31 points with Vegas last season, and 41 points in the year prior. He’s a toolsy forward who can fill a role at center or right-wing. That standing could help him earn a pivotal role behind Auston Matthews and John Tavares, or an important grinder role beside them.
  • Away from the positives, defenseman Simon Benoit was absent from yet another practice on Sunday. He is facing an upper-body injury, per David Alter of The Hockey News. Head coach Craig Berube shared that the Leafs will be taking all of their injuries day-by-day, though he didn’t mention Benoit’s injury or prognosis directly, per Alter’s colleague Nick Barden. Benoit played through 78 games in a Leafs uniform last season. He tied his career-high in scoring with 10 points, to go with 59 penalty minutes and a plus-12 on the full year. Benoit is a strong candidate to fill a daily, bottom-pair role this season – though an extended injury at camp will give newcomers like Henry Thrun and Dakota Mermis a chance to catch up. Both Thrun and Mermis will take the ice for Toronto’s first preseason game on Sunday.

Summer Synopsis: Ottawa Senators

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With training camps now almost upon us, the bulk of the heavy lifting has been done from a roster perspective.  Most unrestricted free agents have found new homes, the arbitration period has come and gone, and the trade market has cooled.  Accordingly, it’s a good time to take a look at what each team has accomplished this offseason.  Next up is a look at Ottawa.

After missing the playoffs for seven straight years in the midst of a long-term rebuild, the Senators finally got over the hump last season, making the postseason and finishing only one point behind Florida for the third seed in the Atlantic Division; the Panthers, of course, went on to win the Stanley Cup again last season.  GM Steve Staios opted to largely keep his core group intact, believing that continued growth from their top players will allow them to take another step forward in 2025-26.

Draft

1-23 – D Logan Hensler, Wisconsin (Big 10)
3-93 – F Blake Vanek, Stillwater (USHS-MN)
4-97 – G Lucas Beckman, Baie-Comeau (QMJHL)
5-149 – F Dmitri Isayev, Yekaterinburg (MHL)
6-181 – F Bruno Idzan, Lincoln (USHL)
7-213 – G Andrei Trofimov, Magnitogorsk (MHL)

The Senators didn’t make any big splashes at the 2025 draft, outside of trading down slightly in the first round in order to pick up the third-round pick they would send to Los Angeles for Spence. The club didn’t have a second-round pick as a result of the Zetterlund trade with San Jose, but nonetheless managed to put together a draft class that should produce an NHL player or two.

Hensler was widely regarded as a polished defenseman by scouts, one who capably handled the rigors of NCAA hockey as a freshman and grew more comfortable as the season progressed. While most public-facing scouts do not credit Hensler with a standout single tool, he’s widely seen as a likely long-term NHL player. The team at Elite Prospects recently ranked Hensler as the club’s number-two prospect behind 2024 top pick Carter Yakemchuk.

The Senators began the second day of the draft by adding Vanek, a Minnesota high school prospect who is the son of longtime NHLer Thomas Vanek. Vanek offers an intriguing package of physical tools and was ranked 18th in the team’s system.

In the later rounds, Beckman represented a solid bet as the club added one of the QMJHL’s more promising netminders. Isayev is an undersized Russian winger who was point-per-game in the MHL in his draft season, while Idzan dazzled fans of the USHL’s Lincoln Stars with his offensive skill last season. He became the first Croatian selected in the NHL Entry Draft and will play at the University of Wisconsin next season.

Trade Acquisitions

D Jordan Spence (from Los Angeles)

The Senators’ lone trade acquisition from the summer was Spence, a 24-year-old blueliner. Spence is an undersized blueliner who brings real offensive talent in his game, and had two quality, near point-per-game AHL seasons after turning pro in 2021-22. Spence already has 180 NHL games to his name, and is coming off of a season where he scored 28 points in 79 games. The arrival and emergence of 2021 top pick Brandt Clarke in a similar offensively-focused right-shot role appears to have pushed Spence out of Los Angeles, and the Senators look poised to benefit.

At the moment, Spence appears to sit third on the team’s right-shot defensive depth chart, behind established veterans Artyom Zub and Nick Jensen. He’ll have to compete with Nikolas Matinpalo for the team’s third-pairing right-side spot, but Spence is notably more experienced than Matinpalo and should be viewed as the favorite for that role.

If Spence can further establish himself as an NHL regular in Ottawa and perhaps find a way to get minutes on the power play (not the easiest task with Jake Sanderson and Thomas Chabot on the roster) Spence will likely provide a strong return for the Senators’ investment of a third-round pick.

Beyond adjusting to a new environment, it’s an important year for Spence due to his contract situation. His $1.6MM AAV contract is set to expire this summer, when he’ll in all likelihood receive a qualifying offer and become a restricted free agent. He already has an argument for a decent pay raise over the value of his last deal, but breaking into the 30-point range could strengthen his case even further.

UFA Signings

F Wyatt Bongiovanni (one year, $775K)*^
F Nick Cousins (one year, $825K)^
F Lars Eller (one year, $1.25MM plus $1MM in bonuses)
F Claude Giroux (one year, $2MM plus $2.75MM in bonuses)
F Hayden Hodgson (two years, $1.55MM)*^
F Arthur Kaliyev (one year, $775K)*
F Olle Lycksell (one year, $775K)*
G Hunter Shepard (one year, $775K)*

*-denotes two-way contract
^-denotes re-signing

The Senators didn’t do any major free agent shopping this past summer – the largest deal they signed was to re-sign veteran Claude Giroux for another campaign. Their most significant UFA addition from outside the organization was Eller, a veteran center signed to a one-year deal. Eller, now 36, has long been one of the NHL’s better third-line centers, though age is beginning to catch up to him. The 2018 Stanley Cup champion saw his offensive production decline from 15 goals, 31 points in 2023-24 to 10 goals, 22 points in 2024-25.

The Senators didn’t sign Eller for his offense, though. What they’re likely seeking is for Eller to serve as a quality fourth-line defensive center. With Tim Stutzle, Dylan Cozens, and Shane Pinto entrenched as the team’s three top centers moving forward, there isn’t a need for Eller to play as big a role in Ottawa as he did in during his peak years with the Washington Capitals. His contract from this past summer reflects that.

The Senators’ other UFA external additions were made more with an eye to depth and their AHL affiliate than anything else.

They picked up Kaliyev after his stint with the New York Rangers failed to generate momentum. He’s a player Senators management is familiar with from his days in the OHL: Senators president of hockey operations Steve Staios was Kaliyev’s GM back during Kaliyev’s successful stint with the then-Hamilton Bulldogs. One has to think this is a big year for the enigmatic 24-year-old winger to prove he has what it takes to be an NHL player.

Lycksell and Bongiovanni are quality AHL scorers, and Lycksell’s $450k AHL salary indicates he’ll likely be relied upon as one of the top offensive weapons in Belleville. Hodgson is a bigger winger with a more physical profile who could end up seeing an NHL recall should the Senators need a player to fill a fourth-line role for a short period. Shepard, a two-time Calder Cup champion, will likely play a big role for the AHL Senators after receiving a $400k AHL salary to sign in Ottawa.

RFA Re-Signings

F Xavier Bourgault (one year, $775K)*
D Cameron Crotty (two years, $1.625MM)*
F Jan Jenik (one year, $775K)*
D Tyler Kleven (two years, $3.2MM)
D Nikolas Matinpalo (two years, $1.75MM)
G Leevi Merilainen (one year, $1.05MM)
D Donovan Sebrango (one year, $775K)*
D Lassi Thomson (one year, $775K; returns from SHL)
D Fabian Zetterlund (three years, $12.825MM)

*-denotes two-way contract

The Senators’ most significant RFA re-signing was undoubtedly that of Zetterlund, their mid-season trade acquisition from the San Jose Sharks. They didn’t elect to sign the Swedish winger to a long-term extension, which is understandable after he struggled to produce in his 20-game run in Ottawa last season.

In San Jose, Zetterlund showed quite a bit of promise, and has now scored at least 40 points in back-to-back years. Zetterlund plays a unique style in that he has a power forward’s game despite being 5’11. Now earning a shade over $4MM, Zetterlund will have to build some chemistry with one of the team’s existing scorers in order to justify the club’s level of investment in him.

Kleven and Matinpalo are the other two major skaters in the club’s RFA cohort, both likely to be on the team’s NHL roster for 2025-26. Kleven is a rangy defensive defenseman likely to resume his role as the team’s third-pairing left-shot blueliner for this upcoming season – and his $1.6MM AAV reflects that role. Matinpalo, 26, impressed last season as he broke into the NHL and even earned a role on Finland’s Four Nations Faceoff team. He got into 41 games last season and the addition of Spence means he’ll have to really compete to earn a regular role on Ottawa’s defense. But at minimum, it looks like he’ll be the club’s seventh defenseman and be first to step in should any injuries strike.

Merilainen, the lone goalie in that grouping, played in 12 NHL games last season and will be Ottawa’s backup behind starter Linus Ullmark for the upcoming season, provided he can fend off a challenge from the big Mads Sogaard.

Bourgault, Crotty, Jenik, Sebrango, and Thomson are each long-shots to make the team’s NHL roster, but were nonetheless re-signed with an eye to AHL Belleville. It’s a big year for Bourgault in particular, as the 22-year-old forward is just one of a small handful of 2021 first-round picks who have yet to appear in an NHL game.

Departures

F Angus Crookshank (signed with New Jersey, two years, $1.55MM)*
F Philippe Daoust (non-tendered but signed AHL deal with Belleville)
D Jeremy Davies (signed with AHL Henderson)
G Anton Forsberg (signed with Los Angeles, two years, $4.5MM)
F Adam Gaudette (signed with San Jose, two years, $4MM)
D Dennis Gilbert (signed with Philadelphia, one year, $875K)
D Travis Hamonic (signed with Detroit, one year, $1MM)
F Matthew Highmore (signed with NY Islanders, one year, $775K)*
F Jamieson Rees (non-tendered but signed AHL deal with Belleville)
F Cole Reinhardt (signed with Vegas, two years, $1.625MM)
F Tristen Robins (signed in Czechia)
D Filip Roos (signed in Sweden)

*-denotes two-way contract

The Senators lost a few NHLers this offseason, but nobody who is likely to leave a big void in the club’s roster. Gaudette scored 19 goals last season and the Senators didn’t bring in anyone with that kind of goal-scoring record, but an improved year from Zetterlund could help cover for the loss of Gaudette. The Senators could very well have been skeptical that Gaudette, who shot 21.1% last season, would be able to repeat his performance, hence their decision not to re-sign him.

In the departure of Anton Forsberg, the Senators lost an experienced NHL backup – but if Merilainen’s 2024-25 performance is something he can build on, the Senators will be fine. Right-handed veteran Hamonic’s spot on the team’s defensive depth chart was filled by the addition of Spence, and while Reinhardt was a useful, scrappy depth winger, he’s not a departure that will make a major difference in the Senators’ fortunes.

Salary Cap Outlook

The Senators enter training camp with a little over $3.5MM in cap space, per PuckPedia.  However, the team is operating as a cash-over-cap team, something that owner Michael Andlauer acknowledged would likely mean they won’t spend right to the $95.5MM ceiling.  Between that, wanting to keep some flexibility open for injuries, and keeping some money available for the bonuses to Giroux and Eller, the actual amount of that cap room that’s available to be spent right now would appear to be quite limited.

Key Questions

Who Will Be Ottawa’s Backup Goalie?

Although the Senators have one of the NHL’s top veteran netminders in Ullmark, the 32-year-old Swede is not known for an ability to shoulder a heavy workload. Ullmark played in just 44 games in 2024-25, and even in his Vezina Trophy-winning season, he played in just 49 games. In other words – the backup goalie spot in Ottawa is more important than for other teams, because the club’s other netminders are in line to play a greater workload than backups see in other markets. Offseason RFA signing Merilainen looks like the front-runner to be the backup goalie after the departure of Forsberg, but he’ll be pushed by Sogaard, who has 29 games of NHL experience. The dark horse here would be Shepard, a veteran who struggled with the AHL’s Hershey Bears in 2024-25 but was downright elite in 2023-24.

Can the Senators Expect More From Their Stars?

The Senators are led by a talented core group of in-their-prime players, but that’s not to say each player played up to his potential in 2024-25. Franchise center Stutzle led the team in scoring, but he’s finished in the 70’s in terms of point production in back-to-back years. After scoring 90 points in his third NHL campaign, it would be fair to expect a little bit more from the highly talented German. The same can be said for captain Brady Tkachuk. Tkachuk is a highly coveted, unique talent, and so one would be forgiven for not realizing he had only 55 points last season. For the Senators to become the kind of dominant force they have the talent to be, they’ll need him to produce the way he did in 2022-23, when he put up 83 points to go alongside 35 goals. The Senators have a collection of players that, on paper, are more than good enough to claim a divisional playoff spot. But they’ll need a few big names to step up and play up to their potential in order to do so.

How Will Zetterlund Do In His First Full Senators Season?

The Senators’ roster is largely settled, with big names under contract and few existential roster questions. As the above question alluded to – the pieces are largely in place, the main element needed now is execution. The most notable still-unsettled piece of the Senators puzzle is Zetterlund. The Athletic’s Julian McKenzie indicated before training camp that the expectation would be for Zetterlund to begin the year on the team’s first line alongside Stutzle and Tkachuk, which would be a huge opportunity for Zetterlund to potentially set new career highs in production. Whether he’s able to actually do so – and justify the Senators’ investment in him – will be a key storyline to watch in Ottawa this season.

PHR’s Ethan Hetu also contributed to this column.

Photos courtesy of Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images.

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