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Three Questions Ahead Of The 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup

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The 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup is set to kick off in Edmonton on August 5th. The event will feature the top U18 players from eight countries – Canada, Czechia, Finland, Germany, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States. It’s the first chance for many of the top names in the 2025 NHL Draft to earn their keep, sparking plenty of storylines worth following closely. We’ll break down three top storylines entering the unofficial start of the NHL scouting season.

The Top Storylines At The 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup

Can Team Canada Achieve Yet Another Three-Peat?

Team Canada sits unrivaled atop the Hlinka leaderboards, having medaled in 28 of the 32 tournaments since 1991 – including a seven-year Gold streak from 1994 to 2002 and an eight-year streak from 2008 to 2015. Moreover, Canada has won Gold at every Hlinka hosted in Canada – and they seem poised to uphold that prophecy this year. The Canadian roster is full of top-end NHL Draft talent, including the perennial Gavin McKenna – who recently broke Alex Ovechkin’s U17 scoring record at the World U18 Championship with 10 goals and 20 points in just seven games. McKenna is among the best prospects in hockey right now – and isn’t draft-eligible until 2026. He’ll be well flanked by defenseman Matthew Schaefer – potentially this year’s top defenseman – and backed on the depth chart by Jake O’Brien – a flashy, two-way centerman vying for his own first round love.

And while Canada’s top-end offense extends well beyond the trio – it’s their depth that pushes them to the top once again. The competition for the team’s fourth line could feature some mix of Emile Guite, Ethan Czata, Braeden Cootes, and Liam Kilfoil  – a quartet of easy picks for this year’s top breakout candidate: Guite for his shot, Czata for his grit, and Cootes and Kilfoil for their high-speed playmaking. The whole group is backed by Jack Ivankovic, who proved his worth with a .915 save percentage in 25 OHL games last year, though some still remain skeptical about his 5’11” frame. Still, his athleticism should be the perfect flashy backdrop to a Team Canada team gearing up for another big tournament.

Who Will Emerge As Team USA’s Star?

Team USA is intentionally pigeon-holed at every Hlinka, opting not to roster any members of their U.S. National Team Development and instead picking the top options out of the USHL, NAHL, and youth hockey. That decision inspires the reoccurring question of who will emerge as the leaders of a hodgepodge group. It’s a prestigious role, previously held by top prospects like Trevor Connelly, Quentin Musty, and Arthur Kaliyev – who each went on to be picked in their respective draft’s top 35.

This year’s top option seems to be Benjamin Kevan – who led all U17 skaters in the USHL in scoring last season with 57 points in 59 games, over 20 points more than Lev Katzin, who ranked second. In fact, Kevan joined Macklin Celebrini as the league’s only U17 skaters to break 50 points since 2018. That’s lofty company, and while Kevan isn’t on Celebrini’s tier of generational prospect, the power and drive behind his all-offense style could be enough to command first round attention this year. Jesse Orlowsky and Sam Kappell seem like strong secondary candidates – both boasting similar heft and playmaking to Kevan – though the undersized Sam Spehar could end up the one to stand out after a fantastic U17 Selects camp to earn a roster spot.

Whichever forward emerges on top will have to bring the drive to make up for a defense and goalie group a bit weaker than Team USA typically brings – adding to the challenge of the top spot.

Does Team Sweden Have Enough Firepower?

Team Sweden enters this year’s Hlinka with a significantly improved roster, after managing a measly 2-1-0 record and fifth place finish last year. Their lineup is bolstered by top-of-the-draft prospects in Jakob Ihs-Wozniak, Filip Ekberg, and Ivar Stenberg. The trio led Sweden in a much more fruitful 2023 World U17 Challenge, largely thanks to Stenberg’s seven goals and 10 points in seven games. Players like Viktor Klingsell and Eric Nilsson stretch the high-impact offense down Sweden’s lineup, though it’s premiere defenseman Sascha Boumedienne that could be the X-factor. Boumedienne is the dark horse candidate for the 2025 draft’s top defenseman, after scoring 27 points in 49 USHL games and 11 points in 18 games with Sweden’s U17 team last year. He boasts a hefty, built-out frame and all of the strength that comes with it – showing a strong ability to carry the puck downhill with power and awareness. To what extent he’s able to again blend with Sweden’s high-scoring forwards could prove one of this year’s most exciting storylines to follow.

Edmonton’s Cap Planning Could Be Hindered By An Offer Sheet

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While offer sheets are few and far between in the NHL, all it takes is one team that decides to try to disrupt things and sign a player on a cap-strapped team to an offer sheet to change things.  Looking at who is left, Edmonton is a team that would find themselves in a tough spot if one of their restricted free agents, defenseman Philip Broberg and forward Dylan Holloway, were to eventually sign an offer sheet with another team.

Even after moving out Ryan McLeod to Buffalo earlier this summer, the Oilers currently find themselves projected over the salary cap by $354K, per PuckPedia, and that’s with a 21-player roster.  While there has been plenty of speculation that winger Evander Kane could be on LTIR to start the season, that’s only a short-term solution as they’d have to get back into cap compliance to activate him later on.  The fact they went and moved McLeod out suggests that they don’t expect Kane to miss the entire year so they’ll have to drop below the $88MM Upper Limit at some point.

To that end, it stands to reason that Edmonton will be pushing for bridge deals with both Broberg and Holloway, perhaps as short as a one-year agreement to keep the cap charge as low as possible.  It’s a route they took with Evan Bouchard last summer and did so in the past with McLeod and Kailer Yamamoto coming off their entry-level contracts.  All things considered, they’ve been pretty consistent with that practice and understandably so.

But what if one or both of those players want the security of a longer-term agreement?  At this point, it looks like the only way they’d be able to get one is by signing an offer sheet.

Granted, neither player has done enough at the NHL level to command the type of offer from another team that pushes the compensation threshold to the level of a first-round pick.  But it doesn’t have to get that high to put Edmonton in a bind, assuming the players are willing to sign an offer sheet elsewhere.

Broberg only played 12 regular season games for the Oilers last season but the 2019 eighth-overall pick was quite productive with AHL Bakersfield.  The 23-year-old then got into ten playoff games and played well enough that there will be teams that should be willing to take a multi-year flyer on Broberg at a salary that likely surpasses what GM Stan Bowman has in mind.

Holloway is in a similar situation.  He also wound up spending time with the Condors and produced 16 points in 18 games there.  But the 2020 14th pick has rarely had a chance to play in Edmonton’s top six, instead being deployed in limited minutes including time on the fourth line.  The end result was a pedestrian nine points in 38 games.  But Holloway was a bit more impactful in the playoffs, picking up five goals in 25 contests, giving him a bit of a boost heading into negotiations.

Again, they’re not going to break the bank with an offer sheet but they don’t have to sign a pricey deal in order to put Edmonton into a bind.  Let’s say a team signs Broberg to an offer sheet at the top of the lowest threshold that yields compensation.  That would be a $2.29MM price tag with a third-round pick going the other way.  (Note that the signing team must have their own third-round selection, they can’t use another team’s.)

A one-year offer at that number is by no means a crazy gamble to take for a team looking to add some upside on the back end.  That’s a more than reasonable price, both in terms of salary and draft pick compensation.  It’s safe to assume that $2.29MM is a fair bit higher than what’s currently budgeted for Broberg; Edmonton might be hoping for half of that.  If they match (and they almost certainly would), now their overage surpasses $2.64MM with Holloway still to sign.

Now let’s run Holloway through that same scenario, signing a one-year, $2.29MM offer sheet (with the same team after Broberg is matched or someone else).  Again, that’s a more than reasonable offer to try to get a fairly recent first-round pick at a fairly low acquisition cost.  And again, while they’d be a near lock to match, doing so then pushes their overage to $4.93MM.

While Kane potentially starting on LTIR would allow them to narrowly squeak under the cap to start the season, they’d be forced to carry a maximum of one extra skater for that time and then need to cut nearly $5MM upon Kane’s return.  That’s a task that’s much easier said than done in-season without taking away a core player.

If Broberg and/or Holloway were to sign a multi-year offer sheet where the compensation would push into the next threshold, we’d be looking at more than $2.29MM and less than $4.58MM with the compensation being a second-round selection.  We’ve already seen what offers at the lower end of that range could do, going higher would put them in more of a bind, making it harder to keep their team intact while matching the offer.

Again, this is something that is unlikely to happen and even if it did, Edmonton would almost certainly match.  But if a team is looking to wreak some havoc on a rival’s cap structure, this is one way to try to do it, assuming they could get the player to put pen to paper on an offer sheet.

Minor Transactions: 8/3/24

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It’s unlikely that there will be considerable activity on the NHL transactions front at this point of the summer but some of their affiliates have been busy in recent days.  Here’s a rundown of those moves and any news on former NHL players.

  • Free agent winger Nick Swaney has signed a one-year deal with AHL Chicago, per a team announcement (Twitter link). The 26-year-old spent the last four years in Minnesota’s system but was limited to just seven games due to injuries last season.  Swaney had 30 points in 48 AHL contests in 2022-23, resulting in him making his NHL debut as well.
  • Former NHL blueliner Joe Morrow is sticking around in England as he has re-signed with EIHL Manchester, per a team release. The 31-year-old played in 162 NHL games over parts of five seasons with Boston, Montreal, and Winnipeg, collecting 32 points.  Last season with the Storm, Morrow had 27 points.  He has had somewhat of a nomadic journey since leaving North America, spending time in Belarus, Finland, Kazakhstan, Russia, Switzerland, and now England.
  • Nick Jones, who spent the last four seasons on Winnipeg’s AHL team, has opted for a change of scenery as Vlci Zilina of the Slovak Extraliga announced on their Instagram page that they’ve inked the winger to a one-year deal. The 28-year-old had 16 points in 47 games with the Moose last season but now qualifies for the lower tier of veteran status with more than 260 career AHL appearances (but below the main veteran threshold of 320) which likely limited his North American options this summer.

This post will be updated throughout the day.

Stuart Skinner Changes Agents

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Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner will enter the second season of a three-year bridge deal in 2024-25 on a contract that carries a $2.6MM AAV.  Accordingly, he’s still a year away from becoming eligible to discuss an extension.  However, that hasn’t stopped the netminder from changing representation as Alpha Hockey’s Ray Petkau announced (Twitter link) that his agency is now representing Skinner.

It has been an eventful couple of years for the 25-year-old.  In his first full NHL season, Skinner made the All-Rookie team while posting a 2.75 GAA and a .913 SV% in 50 regular season games, taking over as the starter from Jack Campbell.  That helped earn him the three-year deal from then-GM Ken Holland.  Skinner also got the bulk of the workload in the 2023 postseason, putting him in a good position to be leaned on as the undisputed starter for 2023-24.

While Skinner played big minutes like a true starter last season, it wasn’t exactly easy.  Through the first two months of the season, he posted a save percentage of just .881, resulting in Calvin Pickard starting to see regular NHL action for the first time in several years.  However, he was much better when the calendar flipped to 2024, posting a .914 SV% from January on.  Skinner then followed that up with a 2.45 GAA and a .901 SV% in 23 playoff starts before falling to Florida in the Stanley Cup Final.

At this point, it’s fair to suggest that Skinner has boosted his stock beyond his $3MM required qualifying offer in 2026.  The goal now will be to play more consistently and show that he’s worth starters’ money (more than double his current AAV) on a long-term deal.  Regardless of when discussions for that next deal start, it’ll be someone different handling the negotiations on Skinner’s end this time around.

Hurricanes Have A Decision To Make With Their Second Buyout Window

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On Monday, the Hurricanes avoided salary arbitration with restricted free agent Martin Necas, inking him to a two-year, $13MM contract.  He was their only player to file so with that case now settled, a short-term second buyout window has opened up.

As a refresher, teams get their second buyout window once a team’s arbitration cases have been resolved.  It opens up 72 hours after signing and lasts for 48 hours (meaning time is nearly up for Carolina to consider this).  The only contracts that can be bought out in this window are for players with cap hits higher than $4MM and the player had to have been on the team’s roster at the last trade deadline.

At first glance, the idea of using the window might not make much sense.  After all, they have $6.44MM in cap space, per PuckPedia, an amount that is higher than most teams.

However, it’s a misleading figure as they still have restricted free agent Seth Jarvis to re-sign; the winger wasn’t eligible for arbitration.  The 22-year-old is coming off a breakout year, one that saw him record 33 goals and 34 assists in 81 regular season games before adding nine more points in 11 playoff contests.  A first-round pick in 2020, it’s fair to say that the Hurricanes envision Jarvis as being a core piece of their long-term future.

Generally, Jarvis is the type of player that they’d like to sign to a max-term eight-year agreement, buying an additional four years of team control.  However, coming off the year he had, it’s quite likely that such an agreement would cost more than what they have in cap room.  For the price tag to come in around $6MM, it would likely need to be a three-year bridge agreement.  So if GM Eric Tulsky wants to sign Jarvis for that long, he’ll need to create some cap space.

One way to do that is in this second window where one potential candidate stands out, Jesperi Kotkaniemi.  He has not lived up to his third-overall draft billing and is coming off his most disappointing season, one that saw him notch 12 goals and 15 assists in 79 games while logging only 12:59 per game.  That’s not a great return on a $4.82MM AAV, especially when that contract runs through the 2029-30 season.

Typically, a buyout on that expensive and long of a contract would make no sense.  But because Kotkaniemi is only 24, the buyout cost is one one-third, not the standard two-thirds.  Accordingly, the buyout would break down as follows:

2024-25 to 2026-27: $835K per season
2027-28 to 2029-30: $455K per season
2030-31 to 2035-36: $835K per season

That means that a Kotkaniemi buyout would save the Hurricanes $3.985MM, bringing their cap space total to $10.425MM which is ample space to give Jarvis a max-term extension while giving them enough flexibility to afford a replacement roster player for Kotkaniemi.

Are there other ways to open up that cap space?  Of course; they could look to the trade market and try to find a way to shed salary that way.  And let’s face it, the prospect of paying Kotkaniemi until 2036 not to play for them is far from appealing.  Frankly, it would be a surprise if they went this route.  But if they want to work out a long-term deal with Jarvis and need to free up the money, this is one route they can go but only for a few more hours.

Free Agent Profile: Oliver Kylington

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Now more than a month into free agency, pretty much all of the top talents are off the board.  However, there are a handful of intriguing players still available, one of whom is defenseman Oliver Kylington.

It has been a series of ups and downs for the 27-year-old for the past three seasons, to put it lightly.  In 2021-22, he had a breakout year.  After showing flashes of upside in the past without much consistency, Kylington was able to put together a consistent showing, picking up 31 points in 73 games while logging over 18 minutes per night, good for fourth among Calgary blueliners.

While he improved, he also wasn’t progressing to the point of being a high-end piece, so Flames management saw fit to give Kylington what amounted to a second bridge contract, a two-year, $5MM agreement that walked him right to UFA eligibility.  It was a move that gave them a bit of cap flexibility while hedging against him taking a step back.  Meanwhile, had Kylington continued his progression, he’d have been well-positioned to cash in on the open market.

Of course, it didn’t quite happen that way.  Kylington missed the entire 2022-23 campaign for mental health reasons; that also carried over into last season before he eventually returned to the Flames in January.

Upon returning, Calgary understandably eased him in.  After averaging more than 18 minutes a night in his last season, it took him until the 13th game to reach that mark.  Overall, Kylington played in 33 games, notching three goals and five assists while logging 17:15 per contest.  Those numbers don’t exactly jump off the table which undoubtedly hurt his case heading into free agency.

Stats

2023-24: 33 GP, 3 G, 5 A, 8 PTS, -6, 12 PIMS, 17:15 ATOI, 48.7 CF%
Career: 201 GP, 17 G, 38 A, 55 PTS, +24, 52 PIMS, 15:39 ATOI, 50.7 CF%

Potential Suitors

The possible fits for Kylington come down to a couple of types of teams.  If he’s looking for playing time, trying to land with a weaker team that can give him a chance at being a fourth defender would be the way to go with the hopes of rebuilding some value.  Alternatively, he could elect to try to join more of a contending team and play more of a limited role but hope that being in a winning environment will help in the long run.

In the East, Pittsburgh currently has five regular defensemen before things turn to a variety of depth players and question marks.  Bringing in Kylington would at least give them a sixth proven option while they have ample cap space to fit him in.  Carolina has Alexander Nikishin coming but he’s still a year away.  Kylington could be a depth option that helps bridge the gap.  Meanwhile, the Rangers are currently set to have Zachary Jones on their third pairing.  If they’re not comfortable with that, Kylington could be a viable piece to fit on their third pairing.  However, he’d have to take a pay cut to fill that spot with New York being largely capped out.

Out West, San Jose has been adding some short-term veterans in an effort to improve their competitiveness and Kylington would at least raise the floor at the back of their blueline.  Over time, he could push his way into a bigger role as well.  If Ryan Suter’s addition in St. Louis wasn’t a hedge against Torey Krug’s injury, Kylington could serve as a depth replacement and injury insurance.  While a reunion in Calgary may seem unlikely at this point, there were extension discussions back in June so evidently, there was at least some mutual interest in a new deal with the Flames not that long ago.

Projected Contract

Kylington narrowly missed out on our Top 50 UFA list, checking in two spots below the cut-off.  Last month, the expectation was that Kylington was hoping to land a two-year deal a little above the $2.5MM AAV he had on his now-expired contract.  At this point, achieving both seems unlikely; a one-year agreement is now the likeliest outcome while there aren’t many viable options that can afford Kylington at that price point.  Something closer to the $1.5MM mark would give him some opportunities that otherwise might not come about.  That would be a disappointment based on his early expectations but at this stage of the game, few get the types of contracts they were originally seeking.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

KHL Notes: Blais, Barabanov, Miftakhov

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With NHL interest not being to his liking, it appears as if free agent winger Sammy Blais is considering options in the KHL, according to Metaratings’ Dmitry Levin.  The 28-year-old had a breakout showing in 2022-23, notching 25 points in 71 games, the bulk of which came after being reacquired by St. Louis; he had 20 points in 31 contests down the stretch that year.  However, Blais wasn’t able to carry over that success into last season as injuries and ineffectiveness limited him to just 53 games where he had only one goal and six assists along with 194 hits in 9:41 of action.  From a longer-term standpoint, the idea of Blais going overseas where he can play a bigger role and work on his offensive game makes some sense in the hopes of trying to get back to North America with a better market than he appears to have now.

Other KHL news:

  • Earlier this week, UFA winger Alexander Barabanov signed a two-year deal with Ak Bars Kazan but it wasn’t for a lack of NHL interest. His agent Yuri Nikolaev told AllHockey.ru that he had NHL options on the table but that they didn’t suit him.  Speculatively, that’s likely to mean that teams were coming in with low-cost offers (or even tryout agreements) following a rough year that saw him record just four goals and nine assists in 46 games with San Jose, well below the 47 points in 68 games he put up in 2022-23.
  • Former Tampa Bay goalie prospect Amir Miftakhov wasn’t a fan of playing in the AHL early in his career, which eventually led to a mutual contract termination. However, he might be open to a change of heart, telling AllHockey.ru that he would be ready to play in the AHL moving forward.  The 24-year-old was limited to just nine KHL appearances last season but has a 2.20 GAA and a .919 SV% over five years at that level.  He’s under contract with Ak Bars Kazan through the upcoming season but if he’s still willing to go to the AHL when free agency opens up, he’ll likely garner some NHL interest at that time.

Kings’ Defensive Success Sits With High-Scoring Prospects

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The Los Angeles Kings will be entering the 2024-25 season with a glaring absence on defense after Matt Roy opted to sign with the Washington Capitals. Roy was a pillar of the Kings’ lineup, averaging 20 minutes a night over the last three seasons and serving as the consistent, well-rounded impact that allowed riskier players like Drew Doughty to thrive. But despite losing a paramount right-handed defender, Los Angeles has yet to make any notable blue-line additions – save for a surprisingly expensive, four-year deal for left-shot Joel Edmundson.  They’re now left with just $1.4MM in remaining cap space, leaving the job of filling Roy’s role up to top young Kings Jordan Spence and Brandt Clarke.

Spence is the more seasoned of the two, having appeared in 101 NHL games over the last three seasons. He broke out in a major way during his first professional season in 2021-22, earning an NHL call-up after posting 42 points through his first 46 AHL games. The scoring translated to the top level, with Spence posting eight points through his first 24 NHL games – the fifth-highest point-per-game scoring of any Kings defender that season. He settled in for a full AHL season in the following year, playing in six NHL games and scoring just one point, though Spence did post an impressive 45 points in 56 AHL games. That production was, again, enough to earn him a consistent NHL role this season – something he managed to good effect, netting 24 points in 71 games despite averaging just 14:26 in ice time.

Meanwhile, Clarke stands as Los Angeles’ unrivaled top prospect and looked stellar in his first professional season this year. He fought for the scoring lead on the AHL’s Ontario Reign for much of the year, ultimately recording 46 points in 50 games – the highest scoring rate of an AHL rookie defender since Jack Rathbone in 2020-21, and Justin Schultz in 2012-13 before him. While Rathbone and Schultz have each seen their scoring stall at the NHL level, Clarke seems to be poised to buck the trend after netting six points in his first 16 games with the Kings. Even more exciting – Clarke stood up to a variety of roles in his first NHL stint, playing as little as seven minutes, or as much as 18 minutes, on any given night.

Both Spence and Clarke have fought their way towards more-and-more opportunity in the Kings organization on the back of strong offense, but also carry reasons to hesitate before they’re thrust into the spotlight. Spence has looked admittedly lanky and easy to knock around at times, shying him away from driving too deep into either zone. Clarke shares that hesitancy, as someone still finding his pro footing, and has also yet to show the breakaway speed of a top NHL offensive-defenseman. But the pair still offers tantalizing scoring upside for a Kings defense that’s only supported one 50-point defender since 2000 – Doughty, who’s achieved the feat five times.

Roy was never much of a scorer, even in top minutes, with a career-high of just 26 points. His departure, juxtaposed by the scoring upside of former top-10 pick Clarke, and point-per-game minor leaguer Spence, matched with the defensive safety net of Gavrikov, could be enough to finally give the Kings another high-scoring defender. But one of the two top young defenders will need to take a major step forward if they want to embrace the lofty, top-four vacancy in the L.A. lineup.

Afternoon Notes: Perfetti, Chernyshov, Wranglers

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Recent trade rumors have suggested the Winnipeg Jets offered Cole Perfetti for Carolina Hurricane forward Martin Necas. However, Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Suns has emphasized that there’s no truth to the claim, though Carolina did show interest in acquiring Perfetti. Billeck adds that Necas wasn’t interested in signing long-term in Winnipeg, driving a wedge into trade negotiations.

Necas, 25, has since signed a two-year extension that walks him to unrestricted free agency in 2026, giving him a chance to hand-pick where he spends his prime years. Necas has come into form over the last two seasons, posting a collective 52 goals and 124 points in 159 games. He’s developed into a high-energy scorer with the ability to play both wing and center.

Perfetti, 22, offers that same flexibility, though he’s still searching for his footing at the NHL level. He managed 19 goals and 38 points in 71 games this season despite inconsistent, and controversial, ice time. Perfetti looks poised to join Necas’ ranks of top-six goal-scorers over the next few seasons, though the pair’s age disparity makes them tough to evaluate side-by-side.

Other notes from around the league:

  • San Jose Sharks prospect Igor Chernyshov shared with Sergey Demidov of Russia’s Responsible Gaming that he’ll likely be moving to the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit after San Jose’s training camp. Chernyshov signed his entry-level contract with the Sharks on Thursday and will move to the CHL with rare pro experience, having played in 39 games with the KHL’s Dynamo Moskva over the last two seasons. He’s scored just five points in those appearances – deceptively low considering the impact he brings shift-to-shift. Chernyshov showed a bit more offense in the MHL – Russia’s U21 junior league – with 66 points in 60 games over the same span. He will now be tasked with finding his footing and rediscovering that production in Saginaw, as he fights to earn a spot among San Jose’s pro ranks.
  • The AHL’s Calgary Wranglers have announced the signings of forward Connor Mylymok, defender Charles Martin, and goaltender Connor Murphy. Mylymok and Martin have inked two-year AHL/ECHL contracts, while Murphy re-signs with the Wranglers on a one-way AHL deal. Murphy found his stride after earning an AHL call-up last season, posting a .922 save percentage across 15 games with the Wranglers. With Dustin Wolf set for a promotion to the NHL, Murphy will battle with Devin Cooley and Waltteri Ignatjew for a hardy AHL role. Meanwhile, Mylymok and Martin will continue their pursuit of a call-up from the ECHL.

Metropolitan Notes: Kolosov, Kakko, Boll

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While a report last weekend indicated that Flyers goaltending prospect Alexei Kolosov told the team he wouldn’t report to AHL Lehigh Valley in the fall, general manager Daniel Brière says the team doesn’t “have any confirmation that he’s not coming back” and expects him to be their third-string netminder this season, he told Sam Carchidi of Philly Hockey Now.

Kolosov, 22, signed his entry-level contract last summer but was returned on loan to Dinamo Minsk of the Kontinental Hockey League. Only after Dinamo’s season ended was Kolosov brought over to North America, where he finished the season with an .885 SV% in only two games for Lehigh Valley.

Last weekend, sources told Tony Androckitis of Inside AHL Hockey that Kolosov felt isolated after arriving in North America, a notion Brière refuted in his interview with Carchidi. “As we know, he’s coming back for camp in September,” the GM said. “He was not left by himself, and we thought everything was going good. If he wants to play hockey, he has to come back over. He’s under contract with us, so that’s why I don’t understand all the fuss. I guess a Russian team could say they’re not going to honor the contract. But he’s under contract with the Flyers and that’s where he’s going to have to play if he wants to play hockey.”

Kolosov, a third-round pick of Philadelphia in 2021, posted a .907 SV%, 2.39 GAA and 22-21-3 record with four shutouts in 47 games for Minsk last season.

Here’s more from the Metropolitan:

  • In a mailbag for The Athletic, Arthur Staple opines that Rangers winger Kaapo Kakko is stuck as a “buy-low” trade candidate after signing a one-year, $2.4MM deal for this season back in June. While Staple says there’s been some amount of documented interest in the 2019 second-overall pick on the trade market, he’s “not a player other teams are coveting.” The Finn averaged a career-low 13:17 per game under head coach Peter Laviolette last year amid the worst offensive showing of his five-year NHL resume, limited to 19 points (13 goals, six assists) in 61 games.
  • While the Blue Jackets settled on their next head coach with the hiring of Dean Evason last month, it didn’t mean the rest of the coaching staff was set in stone. The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline reported a couple of weeks ago that the futures of all three of their assistants, Jared Boll, Steve McCarthy and Mark Recchi, were up in the air pending meetings with Evason. Today, Portzline confirmed that Boll’s job is safe for next season, while McCarthy’s and Recchi’s futures haven’t been decided on. The Blue Jackets were already down an assistant after opting not to renew the contract of Josef Boumedienne.

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