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Snapshots: Tsyplakov, Knyzhov, Phillips

July 25, 2025 at 2:29 pm CDT | by Josh Erickson Leave a Comment

The Islanders settled with winger Maxim Tsyplakov before an arbitration hearing earlier today, with the two sides agreeing to a two-year deal with a $2.25MM cap hit. Tsyplakov came down significantly from his initial ask of a $3MM AAV to get the deal done, reports Stefen Rosner of NHL.com. Tsyplakov’s camp lowered their ask to the $2.75MM range once they realized they wouldn’t get Isles general manager Mathieu Darche to acquiesce and dole out a $3MM cap hit. However, when that still wasn’t doing the trick, they ended up settling for the eventual $2.25MM figure out of fear that an arbitrator would dole out a lower award, Rosner reports, particularly as Tsyplakov would only have been eligible for a one-year contract if he reached a hearing, as he was only one year away from UFA eligibility.

Here’s more from around the hockey world today:

The Canucks’ AHL affiliate in Abbotsford announced four signings today, including former Sharks defenseman Nikolai Knyzhov. His brief 81-game NHL career with San Jose was derailed by a core muscle surgery that sidelined him for the entire 2021-22 season, and he hasn’t played in the NHL since the Sharks bought him out following the 2023-24 campaign. He landed a PTO with the Penguins in training camp last fall, but that only yielded an AHL contract with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The 27-year-old lefty was later traded to the Grand Rapids Griffins in March. He totaled six points and a +1 rating in 26 appearances for the two clubs, along with one assist and a -6 rating in six appearances for the ECHL’s Cincinnati Cyclones.
Flames defense prospect Mace’o Phillips will delay his college commitment for the University of Minnesota for a year and instead join the USHL’s Green Bay Gamblers for his post-draft season, Ryan Sikes of Puck Preps reports. Calgary’s third-round pick (No. 80) in last month’s draft will now wait to join the NCAA ranks until 2026-27. The 6’6″, 234-lb shutdown lefty spent last year with the U.S. National Team Development Program’s under-18 squad, where he posted six points and a -11 rating with a whopping 103 PIMs in 60 appearances.

East Notes: Timmins, Järnkrok, Garand

July 25, 2025 at 12:27 pm CDT | by Josh Erickson 2 Comments

The Sabres and restricted free agent defenseman Conor Timmins are not close on a new contract with his arbitration hearing eight days away, according to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period.

Two of the seven players who filed for arbitration and didn’t reach settlements in the first few weeks of July have since settled since their hearing dates were announced. Arbitration hearings were initially slated to begin today with the Kraken and Kaapo Kakko, but they reached a three-year settlement earlier in the week. Earlier today, the Islanders also signed Maxim Tsyplakov to a two-year, $4.5MM deal.

That leaves Blackhawks goaltender Arvid Söderblom with the first hearing on Monday if the two sides don’t come to an agreement over the weekend. As for Timmins, Pagnotta says there has been no traction on the talks, and the two sides expect to use the hearing to resolve their dispute.

Buffalo acquired Timmins from the Penguins on draft day in something of a salary dump, sending older, more expensive righty Connor Clifton to Pittsburgh. The Sabres were his third team in a few months after beginning the season with the Maple Leafs, where the offensive-minded righty only had eight points in 51 games. He was then traded to the Penguins at the deadline as the Leafs freed up roster space to make other pickups, notably Brandon Carlo and Scott Laughton.

General manager Kevyn Adams said when Buffalo picked him that he’s a player they’ve had their eyes on for a while. Timmins could be in line for an increased role in Buffalo with only Michael Kesselring alongside him as a right-shot defenseman on their projected active roster, and because of that, he’s likely looking for more than what the Sabres are currently willing to offer. The 2017 No. 32 overall pick has 46 points in 159 career NHL games with the Avalanche, Coyotes, Maple Leafs, and Penguins.

There’s more out of the Eastern Conference:

Things are similarly quiet with the Maple Leafs as they continue to shop veteran forward Calle Järnkrok to clear cap space, Pagnotta said. There haven’t been any teams linked to him as “the market hasn’t been vibrant,” Pagnotta wrote, but Toronto continues to make clear he’s available as they eye other moves to help fill the Mitch Marner void. While he only has one year left on his deal, they’re inhibited by Järnkrok’s 10-team no-trade list and the fact that he’s only played in 71 out of a possible 164 games (43.3%) over the last two seasons due to various injuries. He had one goal and seven points in 19 games last season after recovering from sports hernia surgery.
The Rangers aren’t concerned about reaching an agreement with RFA goalie Dylan Garand, Peter Baugh of The Athletic writes. The 23-year-old is the organization’s top prospect between the pipes and is firmly entrenched as their third-stringer with Igor Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick still comprising their NHL tandem, but both sides see a pathway for him to make the jump to the NHL in 2026-27, Baugh writes. After posting sub-.900 save percentages in his first two professional seasons, Garand improved to a .913 mark in 39 games for the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack in 2024-25.

Islanders Sign Maxim Tsyplakov To Two-Year Deal

July 25, 2025 at 10:59 am CDT | by Josh Erickson 2 Comments

The Islanders have avoided an arbitration hearing with restricted free agent winger Maxim Tsyplakov and signed him to a two-year, $4.5MM contract, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports.

Tsyplakov’s hearing was scheduled for Tuesday, so the settlement comes with four days to spare. Of the seven players who made it to mid-July without having their arbitration cases settled, two of them have now agreed to new deals. The Kraken reached a three-year, $13.575MM deal with Kaapo Kakko, whose hearing was initially scheduled for today, last Tuesday.

The situation surrounding Tsyplakov was rare in that he was eligible for arbitration immediately after his rookie season. That’s rarely the case, but since he signed his first NHL contract last summer at the age of 25, he only needed one season’s worth of 10 games of professional experience to qualify.

In the end, they avoid a hearing and reach a resolution to reward Tsyplakov, who was viewed as the top international free agent on last summer’s market, following a rookie season that saw the Russian forward adjust well to North American ice. There were questions about his offensive ceiling, considering his previous KHL track record – he’d never scored more than 10 goals in a pro season before his 31-goal, 47-point breakout for Spartak Moscow in 2023-24 – but he mainly put those to bed in his first season on the Island.

Tsyplakov obviously didn’t reproduce his KHL numbers, but he settled in well as a valuable middle-six checking winger. His 10-25–35 scoring line in 77 games ranked eighth on the team in point production, and there’s likely room for improvement moving forward after he only shot 8.6% in 2024-25. Tsyplakov also ranked fifth on the team in hits with 140 while averaging 14:58 per game, 1:31 of which came on the power play. He didn’t see any penalty kill usage but provided good possession impacts at even strength with a 51.6 CF%, 2.8% better than how the team fared without him on the ice.

Since his underlying numbers suggest replicable offensive production, a $2.25MM cap hit seems like good value for Tsyplakov’s services, even if he sees his minutes reduced slightly with the free agent signings of Jonathan Drouin and Maxim Shabanov, another KHL pickup, likely pushing him down the depth chart somewhat. The Islanders now have $1.625MM in projected cap space this season with a full roster, according to PuckPedia.

The deal walks Tsyplakov, who turns 27 in September, to unrestricted free agency in 2027.

Image courtesy of Russell LaBounty-Imagn Images.

Examining The Penguins’ Defense Core

July 25, 2025 at 10:52 am CDT | by Josh Cybulski 13 Comments

The Pittsburgh Penguins started the offseason as one of the few teams considered more of a seller than a buyer. Despite that, Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas made some clever acquisitions in free agency and through trades, aiming to bolster a defense that was probably the weakest in the NHL last season. It’s uncertain if this group is any better than before, but they will look quite different when the puck drops in October. New head coach Dan Muse will have many options to choose from when he sets his starting lineup. But how exactly will that group come together?

You can’t talk about the Penguins’ defensive core without mentioning the status of three-time Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson, who may or may not be traded before training camp this fall. The Penguins would like to trade Karlsson (as per Josh Yohe of The Athletic), but they don’t see the 34-year-old as a liability and aren’t going to give him away for nothing, and rightfully so. The Penguins might trade Karlsson in the next two months, but if they don’t, they will face a logjam on the right side of their defense, which may not be the worst thing to start the season for various reasons.

The main benefit of having Karlsson is that it could lessen the load on veteran defender Kris Letang, who is coming off arguably the worst year of his career. The now 38-year-old posted nine goals and 21 assists in 74 games last season, marking the first time he didn’t reach 40 points since the 2016-17 season, when he scored 34 points in 41 games and suffered a season-ending neck injury. While injuries and age may have caught up with Letang, it’s also possible that he is being asked to do too much at this stage in his career, and trading Karlsson might not reduce his burden but could increase it. Pittsburgh has never really treated Karlsson as a top-pairing defenseman, but if they do keep him, it’s probably time to let Letang slide into the second pairing and move Karlsson up to the top unit. There’s also a remote chance that the Penguins could move Letang to the much weaker left side if they retain Karlsson, which they have tried in the past.

Behind Karlsson and Letang on the right side are newly acquired Connor Clifton and Matt Dumba, both of whom were salary dumps by their previous clubs. It’s tough to gauge how either man will fit in, but one or both will likely be playing on the third pairing. Clifton provides the Penguins with something they haven’t had in a defenseman for quite some time — a physical player who can throw hits. The 30-year-old struggled to find his game last season in Buffalo and needed a change of scenery this offseason. With one more year left on his contract, the Penguins hope he can rebound and become a valuable asset by the NHL Trade Deadline, making it likely they will shelter him on the third pairing to give him every chance to succeed.

The plan will likely resemble Dumba, who was once considered a top-pairing defenseman but is far from that now. He also plays with an edge, but doesn’t contribute much defensively or offensively beyond his willingness to shoot the puck. The move to acquire Dumba was mainly about the second-round pick that came with him, though he should still see time on the bottom pairing and could be moved up if the Penguins decide to part ways with Karlsson.

The interesting part on the right side involves Penguins’ defensive prospect Harrison Brunicke. The second-round pick in 2024 impressed many during his training camp last year, and he might be ready for NHL minutes this season. The 19-year-old probably won’t make the team due to the number of players on one-way contracts ahead of him on the depth chart. However, if he has another strong training camp, he could push his way onto the NHL roster. The Penguins are very high on Brunicke’s game and even see him as a potential future captain, but Yohe believes he will make his debut at the start of the 2026-27 season.

On the left side, the Penguins are a complete mess, and it all starts with Ryan Graves, who signed with Pittsburgh as a free agent on July 1st, 2023. At that time, the Penguins hoped the hulking defenseman would fit nicely alongside Letang and effectively replace the departing Brian Dumoulin. Things didn’t turn out that way, and Graves has been awful in Pittsburgh, sometimes becoming a healthy scratch and being sheltered from tougher competition whenever possible. His signing was the first mistake GM Kyle Dubas made during a summer that proved disastrous for the Penguins. Graves has been borderline unplayable over the last two seasons, and the hope in Pittsburgh is that the new coaching staff can improve his game and extract more than below-replacement-level play from him. Given the Penguins’ lack of high-end options on the left side, Graves will be given a long look to see if he can play a role in the Penguins’ top four.

Beyond Graves, there aren’t many options for Pittsburgh’s top four, but one player who might make it there someday is Owen Pickering. The 21-year-old doesn’t exactly wow with his play, but he showed last season that he’s probably ready to become a full-time NHLer. The 21st overall pick in 2022 played 25 games last season and didn’t look out of place, even though he was given challenging assignments on a very weak team. Pickering even saw some top-four minutes alongside Letang last season, but it will be tough for him to secure a full-time spot this season. Pittsburgh simply has too many players on one-way deals, and while Pickering’s future looks bright, he may have to spend another season in the AHL before earning a full-time role.

After Graves and Pickering, the Penguins have quite a bit of uncertainty on their blue line. This offseason, Pittsburgh signed Parker Wotherspoon to a two-year deal, along with Caleb Jones and Alexander Alexeyev. These players joined a crowded left side that also features Ryan Shea and Sebastian Aho. Among them, Wotherspoon and Shea likely have the best chances at NHL roles, but nothing is guaranteed. Alexeyev is an inauspicious addition, as he played only eight regular-season games last year, but he has good size at 6’4” and is a capable skater who can handle the puck. He might earn a spot on the NHL roster with a solid training camp.

The likeliest defensemen to start the season on the roster for the Penguins are Letang, Karlsson, Clifton, Dumba, Graves, Wotherspoon and Shea. Now, Penguins fans might not love the veteran-heavy defense core. Still, it will give all of the Penguins’ younger defensemen the chance to develop in the AHL with the Penguins’ forward prospects and could lead to something special for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

Photo by Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Morning Notes: Berard, Nabokov, Kärki

July 25, 2025 at 9:56 am CDT | by Josh Erickson 1 Comment

Rangers winger Brett Berard played through most of his rookie season with a labrum tear, he told Mollie Walker of the New York Post.

He sustained the shoulder injury back in November in what was just his fourth career NHL game, but it wasn’t significant enough to keep him out of game action through the remainder of the regular season. While he was initially named to the United States’ roster for the 2025 World Championship on the heels of his first taste of NHL hockey, he ended up pulling out to fully rehab the injury as he aims to crack New York’s opening night roster for the first time in the fall.

“Just kind of lingered all year, wore a brace all year,” Berard said. “It was good to kind of get that situated. It feels good, it feels strong. So just trying to get it all better, but we feel a lot better now.”

Berard, who turns 23 in September, scored six goals and 10 points in 35 appearances for the Rangers last season while averaging 10:43 per game. The 2020 fifth-round pick will likely build on that deployment this season, as the Blueshirts’ roster turnover over the last few months means there are a couple of top-nine spots for the taking, one of which he’ll hope to grab. The diminutive but high-energy lefty also scored 23 points in 30 games for the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack last season.

Hurricanes Sign Jackson Blake To Eight-Year Extension

July 24, 2025 at 9:50 pm CDT | by Josh Erickson 37 Comments

The Hurricanes announced Thursday night that they’ve signed winger Jackson Blake to an eight-year, $45MM extension that will kick in for the 2026-27. While that would normally mean an average annual value and cap hit of $5.625MM, the actual cap hit of the contract will fall in the $5.1MM range due to deferred compensation, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports. The contract buys out the extent of Blake’s RFA eligibility and will make him a UFA following the 2033-34 season.

Blake’s stock has been on the rise since immediately after Carolina selected him in the fourth round in 2021. He was a USHL All-Star in his post-draft season with the Chicago Steel before making the jump to NCAA hockey with North Dakota, where he totaled 102 points in 79 games in two seasons – earning a Hobey Baker finalist nod in his sophomore year. He signed his entry-level contract with the Hurricanes in April 2024 and joined them for the brief remainder of the regular season.

In his first full pro season, Blake hit the ground running. He made the Canes out of camp and had five points through his first nine games despite seeing less than 12 minutes of ice time per night. That offense didn’t quite hold up the rest of the way, though.

While he ended up seeing significant deployment alongside Sebastian Aho at even strength, he ended up finishing the year with a 17-17–34 scoring line in 80 games, finishing ninth on the team in scoring and ninth in Calder Trophy voting as the league’s Rookie of the Year. That’s fine production, especially considering he averaged under 14 minutes per game on the year. He’ll need to build on it to justify that cap hit, though, especially with so much risk attached to a max-term deal.

The good news is that Blake has another year left on his entry-level contract to continue his development before he’ll need to start justifying that cap hit. The son of former NHLer Jason Blake turns 22 next month, yet with this deal, he’s guaranteed to surpass his dad’s career earnings.

Carolina has historically opted to sign their young players for as long and as early as possible, a trend that continues here. Sometimes, it’s paid off – their eight-year, $59.4MM commitment to Seth Jarvis last offseason looks like a steal after he put up a repeat 67-point performance in 2024-25. There’s also the glaring example of where that strategy has failed regarding center Jesperi Kotkaniemi, whose $4.82MM cap hit looks more stomachable now with a rising ceiling but is still well above his market value four years into the deal. The jury is still out on newly-acquired Logan Stankoven, who they inked to an eight-year, $48MM extension at the beginning of the month.

Blake’s deal will be one of the last of its kind. It contains two elements – deferred compensation and an eight-year term – that will be outlawed when the new CBA Memorandum of Understanding takes effect on Sep. 15, 2026. If he waited until reaching RFA status next summer to sign, a lengthy negotiation could have lost him that eighth year if the two sides didn’t come to terms until the beginning of training camp.

With the salary cap’s Upper Limit projected to reach $104MM in 2026-27, the Hurricanes have around $16MM in projected space with Blake’s and Stankoven’s deals taken care of. While they’re projected to be Carolina’s 11th and 12th highest-paid forwards on their opening night roster this season, they’ll be their fifth and sixth-highest paid forwards in 2026-27.

Image courtesy of Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images.

Free Agent Profile: Victor Olofsson

July 24, 2025 at 8:50 pm CDT | by Paul Griser 3 Comments

While Victor Olofsson struggled to stay healthy last season (a common theme for his career), the 29-year-old winger produced 15 goals and 29 points in 56 games for the Vegas Golden Knights. That put Olofsson on an 82-game pace for 22 goals and 42 points, which would have been his highest total since recording a career-best 49 points in the 2021-22 season. His plus-17 rating last season was also a career-high by a wide margin.

When healthy, Olofsson may be the most offensively gifted remaining free agent. He has produced three career 20-plus goal campaigns, including 28 with the Buffalo Sabres during the 2022-23 campaign. He could provide quality depth scoring and might even contribute in a top-six role. However, the Swedish winger has played 75 or more games just once in his NHL career and has averaged only 60 games per season over six full seasons.

As a three-time 20-goal scorer, Olofsson should appeal to a range of teams, whether it’s contenders looking to bolster their depth or rebuilding clubs eyeing a potential trade chip for next season’s deadline.

Stats

2024-25: 56 GP, 15 G, 14 A, 29 PTS, +17, 16 PIMS, 109 shots, 14:30 ATOI, 57 CF%
Career: 370 GP, 105 G, 106 A, 211 PTS, -46, 44 PIMS, 777 shots, 15:18 ATOI, 55.5 CF%

Potential Suitors

As mentioned above, Olofsson may be the best offensive threat still available on the open market, making his services attractive to several potential suitors. His ability to produce 20-goal seasons, combined with his anticipated affordability, should land him a deal in the not-too-distant future.

A reunion with the Golden Knights seemed like a logical fit at the start of free agency, but Vegas is now more than $7 million over the cap, according to PuckPedia. However, a reunion with the Sabres, with whom he spent his first six seasons, could be a fit. The Sabres have more than enough cap space to sign Olofsson and could benefit from a veteran presence within its top-nine. Another team to monitor could be the Minnesota Wild, who despite making the playoffs last season, finished 25th in the league in goals for with 225. Signing Olofsson at a bargain price could help strengthen Minnesota’s depth scoring. Prior to free agency, ProHockeyRumors identified the Seattle Kraken as a potential destination as well.

Projected Contract

Olofsson is coming off a one-year, $1.075 million deal with the Golden Knights. While last season was seen as a “prove-it” year, he ironically proved what’s been true all along: when healthy, he can produce, but injuries continued to limit his overall impact.

The 5’11”, 180-pound winger will likely have to settle for a similar deal this late into the process, although seven figures probably isn’t a guaranteed.

Metropolitan Notes: Clifton, Karlsson, Berard

July 24, 2025 at 7:30 pm CDT | by Paul Griser Leave a Comment

When the Pittsburgh Penguins acquired defenseman Connor Clifton and the 39th-overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for defenders Conor Timmins and Isaac Belliveau ahead of the 2025 NHL Draft, the biggest asset coming back to Pittsburgh appeared to be the pick. However, Clifton is working hard to make a name for himself with his new team.

Speaking with reporters, including Seth Rorabaugh of Triblive.com, Clifton noted his desire to get back to the physical play that became his calling card early in his career. Though the 30-year-old defenseman stands at just 5’11” and 195 pounds, he’s never hesitated to throw big hits or drop the gloves when needed to shift momentum. As Rorabaugh notes, Clifton has led his team in hits each of the last three seasons.

“Working to get to the next level, it was always a big part of my game. I feel like I out-competed my way to the NHL with that sort of style, and that’s what’s going to keep me there,” he said.

Through seven NHL seasons, Clifton has recorded 1,014 hits to go along with 77 points and a plus-43 rating. While Clifton admitted that his two seasons in Buffalo “put my career at a standstill,” he expressed excitement about the opportunity to play in Pittsburgh.

“The change of scenery, I got that call that I’m going to be a Pittsburgh Penguin, I was really excited for the change. I want to get back to my old self and how I play and the impact that I have on the game,” he said.

Elsewhere in the Metropolitan:

Clifton’s new team—for now—still includes Erik Karlsson, whose name has been a constant in trade rumors. While Karlsson has two years remaining on his contract, giving GM Kyle Dubas some flexibility, The Athletic’s Shayna Goldman notes that Karlsson’s age and the risk of a sudden decline could push the Penguins to move him sooner rather than later. As Goldman notes, the pool of quality defensemen available on the open market is drying up. At the same time, the number of teams with an urgent need for a top-pairing blueliner is also shrinking. The offensive-minded Karlsson put up 11 goals and 53 points for the Penguins last season, but also struggled with defensive breakdowns throughout the season.
New York Rangers winger Brett Berard played 35 games throughout his rookie campaign last season, but the majority of them were done so while playing through a significant injury. According to USA Today Sports reporter Vince Mercogliano, Berard suffered a torn labrum in his fourth game of the season on November 30 and played through it the rest of the season. The injury did not require surgery, and the offseason layoff has allowed Berard to return to full health ahead of training camp. In those 35 games, Berard produced six goals and 10 points.

Free Agent Profile: Luke Kunin

July 24, 2025 at 5:42 pm CDT | by Brennan McClain Leave a Comment

After a few quality years with the Minnesota Wild and Nashville Predators, Luke Kunin joined the San Jose Sharks in the 2022-23 NHL offseason. Although he’s seen his market value drop over the last few years, Kunin could hold some value at the bottom of a team’s forward core.

Throughout his time in the Bay Area, largely in a bottom-six role, Kunin scored 27 goals and 49 points in 171 games with a -63 rating, averaging 15:30 of ice time per game. Despite the apparent shortcomings in his defensive and possession game, Kunin remained a physical center with the Sharks, averaging 2.29 hits per game.

Unfortunately, even though he was mostly used as a winger, he had a disappointing run with the Columbus Blue Jackets after being acquired at the 2024-25 trade deadline. Going scoreless in 12 contests, Kunin earned a -4 rating with 24 hits, averaging 11:46 of ice time.

Stats

2024-25: 75 GP, 11 G, 7 A, 18 PTS, -28, 55 PIMS, 112 shots, 14:41 ATOI, 41.3 CF%
Career: 434 GP, 73 G, 69 A, 142 PTS, -97, 387 PIMS, 712 shots, 14:53 ATOI, 43.7 CF%

Potential Suitors

With a career faceoff percentage of 44.9%, it’s unlikely that many teams will see Kunin as a viable option for a bottom-six center in the future. However, his physicality may still attract interest from several clubs, especially those aiming to enhance their lineup with a player of his style.

Disregarding available cap space, the Dallas Stars, Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes, Tampa Bay Lightning, Utah Mammoth, Vegas Golden Knights, and Washington Capitals all finished in the bottom 22% of the league in hits last season. All seven of these teams outside of Utah should be considered legitimate Stanley Cup contenders entering next season (although the Mammoth should compete for a playoff spot), meaning increased physicality, especially toward the bottom of the lineup, would help in those efforts.

Projected Contract

Kunin is coming off a one-year contract worth $2.75 million with the Sharks, but unfortunately, he is likely to earn less in his next deal. Considering the remaining salary cap space available to teams like the Oilers, Stars, and Lightning, Kunin may end up signing a one-year contract for less than $1MM.

Unlike many of the free agents remaining on the market, his physicality may preclude him from having to settle on a one-year league-minimum offer, or even a professional tryout contract during training camp. Still, even though we are far removed from the opening of free agency, there’s plenty of time remaining in the summer for Kunin to find a new home.

Photo courtesy of Russell LaBounty-Imagn Images.

West Notes: Perry, Lardis, Potter

July 24, 2025 at 4:05 pm CDT | by Brennan McClain 13 Comments

In a new interview with Mike Zeisberger of NHL.com, veteran winger Corey Perry spoke of his excitement to return to California to continue his playing career. After spending the last year and a half with the Edmonton Oilers, Perry signed a one-year, $2MM contract with the Los Angeles Kings this offseason.

Despite spending the first 14 years of his career with a California-based team, it’s been six years since he’s played for one. After having the final two years of his eight-year, $69MM extension with the Anaheim Ducks bought out before the 2019-20 season, Perry scored 76 goals and 159 points in 404 games between the Dallas Stars, Montreal Canadiens, Tampa Bay Lightning, Chicago Blackhawks, and Oilers. He’s been more successful in the postseason, scoring 28 goals and 52 points in 119 games, including five trips to the Stanley Cup Final.

Still, Perry is far better known for his play in Orange County over the years, scoring 372 goals and 776 points in 988 games as a Duck. Outside of helping the team win their first and only Stanley Cup championship in 2007, Perry earned the Hart Memorial and Maurice Richard Trophy during the 2010-11 season. Although he’s a native of Peterborough, Ontario, Perry considers California home, saying, “Playing in California, playing in Anaheim for 14 years, you kind of call that home. It was a big part of my career, my life, and it always will be.”

Other notes from the Western Conference:

In a new mailbag from The Athletic’s Mark Lazerus, the columnist opines that while he may not start the season on the Blackhawks’ roster, we should expect to see prospect Nick Lardis at some point during the 2025-26 season. To push back a bit, it may not be the worst idea for Chicago to give Lardis a nine-game tryout this season. The former 67th overall pick of the 2023 NHL Draft had an unbelievable year in the OHL last season, scoring 71 goals and 117 points in 65 games for the Brantford Bulldogs. If the brief tryout doesn’t go well, the Blackhawks can demote him to their AHL affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs, since he’s 20 years old.
In a write-up on the last pick of the first round of the 2025 NHL Draft, Cullen Potter explained to Aaron Vickers of NHL.com that instead of having a role model in the NHL, Potter has modeled his game after his mother’s, U.S.A. Hockey Hall of Fame inductee, Jenny Schmidgall-Potter. The recent pick of the Calgary Flames and a sophomore at Arizona State University was quoted saying, “I haven’t watched too much tape, but just at the outdoor rinks I definitely probably mimic some of her stuff. I think some people that watched her play say I mimic her a little bit.”

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