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Jesper Wallstedt

Central Notes: Rantanen, Wallstedt, Svechkov

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Mikko Rantanen’s reaction to being traded from the Colorado Avalanche was noticeable on the ice. He scored two goals and six points in 13 games with the Carolina Hurricanes and appeared as uninterested in an extension as he did during the games. Since joining the Dallas Stars, Rantanen is enjoying hockey again.

That’s evidenced by Rantanen’s torrid start in the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs. He’s the Conn Smythe Trophy favorite, scoring nine goals and 19 points in 11 games. In a recent article, Peter Baugh of The Athletic explored Rantanen’s pathway to the Stars organization this season.

Baugh even spoke to one of Rantanen’s family friends, Sauli Mattila, who said, “We’re getting back to ‘same old Mikko’ in his face. The smile is coming back.” The Stars are happy to reap the rewards of Rantanen’s new spark, as he may become the first player to be acquired at the trade deadline to become the postseason’s MVP.

Other notes from the Central Division:

  • Now that Marc-Andre Fleury has shut the door on his playing career, Minnesota Wild netminder prospect Jesper Wallstedt has a clear pathway toward NHL minutes. Still, he’s not coming off a promising season, as injuries limited him to 27 games in the AHL, leading Wallstedt to a 9-14-5 record with a .879 SV% and a 3.59 GAA. In an interview with Joe Smith of The Athletic, Wallstedt reaffirmed his confidence in himself, saying, “I know I’m a great goalie. I know I can save the puck. I’ve done it for so many years. I’ve done it at so many different levels. I’ve done it at the AHL. So it’s more that I’m asking myself, ‘Why am I not doing it right now? What has changed?’ I just need to get a clean slate.”
  • In an interview with Dave Kallmann of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Nashville Predators prospect Fedor Svechkov spoke about transitioning back to AHL hockey for the Milwaukee Admirals’ pursuit of the Calder Cup. Svechkov, the team’s first-line center, is second on Milwaukee in postseason scoring with two goals and five points in five games. When pressed on re-joining the Admirals roster, Svechkov said, “It was so easy because I knew almost all the guys, and I’ve been here last year, start of this year, and I know the coaches, know all the stuff. And it was pretty easy, like I just came back to my family.“

Minor Transactions: 4/18/25

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There will be several small roster moves today as playoff teams recall their required third goalie for practice and emergency backup purposes, and non-playoff teams conduct some end-of-season roster trimming. We’ll cover all those moves here:

  • The Blues announced they’ve recalled goaltender Will Cranley from ECHL Florida to serve as their emergency backup. St. Louis selected the 23-year-old in the sixth round of the 2020 draft. He was previously added to the Blues’ practice roster for a day during the 4 Nations break while Jordan Binnington was traveling back from the tournament. He finished his second professional season with a 2.71 GAA, .896 SV%, two shutouts, and an 11-9-3 record in 23 ECHL games. He also logged a .867 SV% in a pair of appearances for AHL Springfield, the first of his career.
  • The Stars added defensemen Lian Bichsel and Alexander Petrovic back to the active roster after reassigning them to AHL Texas yesterday for cap purposes. They needed the space to activate Tyler Seguin from long-term injured reserve for the final game of the regular season. They’re expected to serve as the third pairing in Game 1 of the first round against the Avalanche tomorrow, per Sam Nestler of DLLS Sports. It’ll be the postseason debut for Bichsel, Dallas’ first-round draft choice in 2022. They also recalled goaltender Ben Kraws from ECHL Idaho as their EBUG. An undrafted free agent signing out of St. Lawrence last year, the 24-year-old impressed with a 2.88 GAA, .910 SV%, five shutouts, and a 23-12-5 record in 40 games for Idaho. He also posted a 3.01 GAA and .889 SV% in three appearances for AHL Texas, logging a 2-1-0 record.
  • Serving as the Avalanche’s EBUG will be Kevin Mandolese, the team announced. The 24-year-old has spent the year as Trent Miner’s backup with AHL Colorado after being acquired from the Senators over the offseason. He has a 2.87 GAA, .903 SV%, 11-6-0 record, and one shutout in 19 games.
  • Since the Wild’s AHL affiliate is one of the few to miss the cut for the Calder Cup Playoffs, they’re going with a higher-profile option for their EBUG. Top prospect Jesper Wallstedt will fill the role for them, according to a club announcement. The 2021 first-rounder is expected to succeed the retiring Marc-André Fleury as Filip Gustavsson’s backup next season, but is coming off a disastrous injury-plagued campaign with Iowa. He finished the year with a 3.59 GAA, .879 SV%, one shutout, and a 9-14-4 record in 27 showings.
  • The Panthers summoned Evan Cormier from ECHL Savannah to be their EBUG, per George Richards of Florida Hockey Now. The 27-year-old struggled with a 3.38 GAA, .887 SV%, one shutout, and a 17-13-4 record in 36 showings in 2024-25. He filled the same duties for the Cats in the first half of last year’s playoff run, signing a two-way deal at the trade deadline for the second season in a row.
  • The Penguins returned forwards Ville Koivunen, Joona Koppanen, Vasiliy Ponomarev, Samuel Poulin, Valtteri Puustinen, and defenseman Filip Král to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton after their late-season call-ups. They’ll aid the Baby Pens as they aim to capture a Calder Cup. Not joining them is top prospect Rutger McGroarty, who sustained a lower-body injury last week and isn’t yet ready to return.
  • The Flames assigned forward Sam Morton and defenseman Hunter Brzustewicz to AHL Calgary after they made their NHL debuts in last night’s regular-season finale. Morton scored his first NHL goal in the outing, while Brzustewicz impressed with a plus-two rating. They’ll join the Wranglers for the postseason.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs have recalled enforcer Ryan Reaves from the minor leagues. Reaves recently played in his first AHL games since the 2010-11 season. He recorded one goal and, surprisingly, no penalty minutes in three games of play. The 38-year-old also recorded two assists and 28 penalty minutes in 35 NHL games this season. He’ll provide a boost of muscle to the Leafs lineup as they head towards a First Round matchup against the Ottawa Senators.
  • Defenseman Emil Andrae has been reassigned to the minor leagues after holding down a routine role on the Philadelphia Flyers lineup since early March. Andrae split his time between the major and minor rosters this season, with seven points in 42 NHL games and 16 points in 25 AHL games. He was primarily a minor-leaguer last season and managed a stout 32 points, 66 penalty minutes, and minus-10 in 61 games. With the Flyers season over, Andrae will look to again support the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in a late-season push.
  • The Edmonton Oilers have recalled depth forward Derek Ryan from the minor leagues. Ryan split time between the NHL and AHL this year, with one goal and six points in 36 games in the Oilers lineup. He also managed eight points in 13 AHL games. Ryan has played in the Stanley Cup Playoffs on five different occasions, racking up 10 points in 60 games. That includes appearing in 19 games of Edmonton’s run to the Stanley Cup Finals last season. Ryan contributed one assist to the effort. He’ll now be returned to the NHL roster to support another long run.
  • The Rochester Americans are getting a wave of strong recruits, as the Buffalo Sabres have reassigned each of Jiri Kulich, Tyson Kozak, Noah Ostlund, and Isak Rosen back to the minor leagues. Rosen leads Rochester in scoring this season with 28 goals and 55 points in 60 games. Ostlund has 36 points in 44 games, while Kozak has 14 points in 31 games. Kulich has been the only of the bunch to spend the bulk of the season in the NHL. He carved out a top-six role through points of the season. Kulich finished what was his rookie NHL season with 15 goals and 24 points in 62 games.

This page will be updated throughout the day.

Wild Reassign Travis Boyd, Jesper Wallstedt

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The Wild have returned forward Travis Boyd and goaltender Jesper Wallstedt to AHL Iowa, per the team’s public relations staff. The move leaves them with two open active roster spots and no extra forwards for tomorrow’s game against the Blackhawks, suggesting one of their injured reserve-bound forwards, either Joel Eriksson Ek or Yakov Trenin, might be able to return to the lineup, as Michael Russo of The Athletic relays.

Boyd, 31, was recalled Friday for Minnesota’s back-to-back against Utah and the Jets. It was the veteran’s fourth summons of the season after clearing training camp. None of his recalls have lasted for an extended period of time, with the longest totaling nine days in late November. That’s meant he’s been able to avoid hitting waivers again when the Wild return him to the minors since he hasn’t accumulated enough days on the active roster nor NHL appearances to make his temporary exemption expire.

The Minnesota native was scratched for Friday’s loss to Utah but entered the lineup for last night’s 5-0 drubbing at the hands of Winnipeg, posting a blocked shot in 8:08 of ice time in what was his third NHL appearance of the season and his first since Nov. 27. The 2011 sixth-round pick of the Capitals has averaged a career-low 7:48 per game when dressed, going without a shot on goal and skating on the wing while starting a whopping 88.9% of his even-strength shifts in the defensive zone. That’s naturally led to some pretty horrid possession numbers. The Wild have only controlled 23.5% of shot attempts and 20% of expected goals with Boyd on the ice, but in such a small and biased sample, those numbers shouldn’t be read into much.

The right-shot forward has never posted very favorable possession metrics, though. This far into his professional career, he is what he is – a valuable depth scorer in limited minutes who’s currently being miscast in a defensive role. With forwards ahead of him on the depth chart returning to health, he’ll return to Iowa, where he leads the club in scoring with 18 points in 17 games in his first AHL action since the 2019-20 campaign.

Boyd has averaged 13 goals and 32 points per 82 games throughout his eight-year NHL career, including a career-high 17 goals and 35 points in 74 games three years ago with the Coyotes. After spending most of last season with Arizona on injured reserve with a pectoral muscle tear, he signed a one-year, two-way deal with the Wild when free agency opened to return to his home state for the first time since his senior season at the University of Minnesota a decade ago.

Wallstedt’s demotion suggests Filip Gustavsson could be ready to return to the crease, at least in a backup role, after missing the last four games with a lower-body issue. He never landed on IR, so Minnesota has continuously considered him day-to-day throughout his absence. Wallstedt, the Wild’s top goaltending prospect, allowed five goals on 24 shots against the Jets last night in his second start of the season. It’s been a difficult year for the 22-year-old Swede, who now has a .843 SV% in his two NHL appearances and a subpar .874 mark in 12 AHL games.

That stark regression comes after Wallstedt was an AHL All-Star each of the last two seasons, prompting Minnesota to sign the 2021 20th overall pick to a two-year, $4.4MM extension in October. At least for now, the stumbling Wild will be ecstatic to get Gustavsson’s services back instead. The 26-year-old has returned to his 2022-23 form, logging a stellar .922 SV%, 2.24 GAA, and two shutouts in 22 starts.

Wild Place Jakub Lauko On IR, Recall Jesper Wallstedt

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The Minnesota Wild have placed forward Jakub Lauko on injured reserve just a few hours after he left the team’s Saturday game against Philadelphia with a lower-body injury. Lauko played three minutes in the win. He’ll now have to miss at least seven days of action, making next Saturday’s matchup against Winnipeg his next chance to step into the lineup. In a corresponding, and surprising, move Minnesota has utilized an emergency recall on goaltender Jesper Wallstedt, suggesting some sort of injury to Filip Gustavsson. Gustavsson backed up Marc-Andre Fleury on Saturday. There’s been no indication of what he may be dealing with.

This news adds to a mounting list of injuries in Minnesota. Winger Mats Zuccarello and defender Jonas Brodin each returned from injury on Saturday – but the team is still without Joel Eriksson Ek, Jacob Middleton, and Yakov Trenin. The former two are both on IR, while the latter was ruled out of Saturday’s game just hours before it started due to an upper-body injury. Luckily, Trenin is only listed as questionable for the team’s Sunday game against Vegas per Michael Russo of The Athletic.

Even Lauko has faced an injury bug, returning on Tuesday from a previous lower-body injury that held him out of six games. It’s unclear if the two injuries are connected, but he’ll return to IR for the second time this season. The routine absences have made it hard for Lauko to find his footing in a new setting after a draft-day trade sent him to Minnesota for Vinni Lettieri and a swap of fourth-round picks. Lauko has recorded four points and a -6 in his first 23 games with the Wild – though he has found ground as a bruiser, ranking third on the team with 46 hits. Lauko is in his third NHL season, spending the previous two in Boston, where he combined for 17 points and 220 hits in 83 games.

The Wild deployed Reese Johnson in Trenin’s role on Saturday. Assuming Trenin returns soon, Johnson could slide over to fill Lauko’s role. Minnesota is also carrying Liam Ohgren and Devin Shore. Neither has scored at in the NHL this season – Ohgren in eight games and Shore in 11 – but they’re both top scorers in the minors. Ohgren has scored 11 points in 12 games for the AHL’s Iowa Wild, while Shore has 10 points in 14 games. Trying to get the monkey off either player’s back at the NHL level could be a good use of time, especially given Ohgren’s case for being Minnesota’s top prospect.

If not Ohgren, the top prospect title would likely go to Wallstedt, even amidst a struggling year. Wallstedt has a 5-6-1 record and .874 save percentage in 12 AHL games this season, including five games of allowing five-or-more goals. This recall could be the balancing piece, though his chance at seeing ice time will largely hinge on the severity of Gustavsson’s injury. Wallstedt played in his first three NHL games last season, setting a 2-1-0 record and .897 save percentage. He’s been the AHL starter since 2022-23, recording a much more encouraging 45-40-10 record and .905 Sv% in 95 games.

Wild Reassign Liam Ohgren, Jesper Wallstedt

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Dec. 4: The Wild announced Wednesday that they reassigned Ohgren and Wallstedt to Iowa. Ohgren did not suit up against Vancouver – evidently, the recalls were for salary cap management purposes to optimize Zuccarello’s LTIR capture.

Dec. 3: The Wild have recalled top prospects Liam Ohgren and Jesper Wallstedt from AHL Iowa ahead of Tuesday’s game against the Canucks, per a team release. The team placed defenseman Jonas Brodin and left-winger Jakub Lauko on injured reserve to open spots on the active roster and also moved right-winger Mats Zuccarello from IR to LTIR to open up the necessary cap space.

Ohgren, 20, made Minnesota’s opening night roster but struggled out of the gate, posting no points and a -2 rating in seven appearances while averaging under 10 minutes a night before being assigned to Iowa at the end of October. He was recalled under emergency conditions for a game against the Stars last month but has otherwise spent all his time in the minors since.

The 2022 first-round pick has fared much better in the AHL, quickly proving himself as one of the club’s most efficient goal-scorers with five in eight contests. It’s unclear if he’ll unseat recent AHL call-ups Ben Jones or Devin Shore for a spot in the lineup tonight with Lauko and Zuccarello still out, but it seems likely.

In Wallstedt’s case, it’s similarly uncertain if they plan to give the 22-year-old his first start of the season between the pipes. Michael Russo of The Athletic “has a sense” that his recall is primarily to get him working with Minnesota’s NHL goaltending staff, one that’s worked wonders to help Filip Gustavsson along to a vicious resurgence this season.

Wallstedt, the 20th overall pick in the 2021 draft, is off to a nightmarish start in Iowa in what the Wild hoped would be his last season seeing minor-league ice. After back-to-back AHL All-Star Game appearances, the 6’3″ Swede has just a .860 SV% and 4.34 GAA in 10 games with Iowa this year behind a 3-6-1 record. Minnesota inked Wallstedt to a two-year, $4.4MM extension in October that goes into effect for the 2025-26 campaign.

Brodin’s IR placement doesn’t affect the stalwart’s return timeline. The 31-year-old has already missed three games with an upper-body injury and remains day-to-day for now. He last played on Nov. 25 against the Jets, so he can come off the injured list at any time.

In 19 games this season, Brodin has two goals and six assists for eight points with a +7 rating. His 45 blocked shots are second on the team behind Jacob Middleton’s 61.

Lauko, 24, also last suited up in the Winnipeg game last week, so his situation is pretty much the same. He’s still listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury, and while he won’t play tonight, he hasn’t been ruled out for Friday’s game against the Ducks. He has two goals and two assists in 21 games for Minnesota in a fourth-line role after being acquired in an offseason swap with the Bruins.

Zuccarello underwent lower-body surgery on Nov. 14 and is expected back sometime in the next two weeks, although the move to LTIR means he won’t be back until Tuesday against Utah at the soonest.

Wild Announce Roster Moves With Joel Eriksson Ek, Jared Spurgeon Out

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3:30 PM : Minnesota has issued an injury update, adding that team captain Jared Spurgeon will also miss Sunday’s game with a lower-body injury. He’s been designated as day-to-day. Spurgeon has recorded one assist, four hits, and six blocks through the first two games, while averaging 19:35 in ice time.

3:00 PM : The Minnesota Wild will be without Joel Eriksson Ek in their Sunday matchup against the Winnipeg Jets, as the centerman bears through a head injury, shares Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. The team specified that the injury is a broken nose. Eriksson Ek left Minnesota’s Saturday matchup midway through the second period after taking an elbow to the face from Seattle defender Adam Larsson.

Minnesota has utilized an emergency recall on forward Travis Boyd, and sent goaltender Jesper Wallstedt to the minor leagues, in response to Eriksson Ek’s absence.

Eriksson Ek has served in a pivotal role for Minnesota in the early going, recording 20 minutes of ice time and a goal in the team’s season opener, and adding just shy of 12 minutes of ice time before leaving on Saturday. He’s been the Wild’s clear top centerman, deployed alongside the team’s leading scorer Matt Boldy. That’ll be a tough role for Minnesota to fill for even one game, though top youngster Marco Rossi could be in a prime position to step up. He’s recorded two assists on the season while operating in the middle-six, and seems to have added a strong layer to his game this summer. Rossi will compete with Ryan Hartman for the ice time opened by Eriksson Ek.

Meanwhile, Boyd will look for space in the bottom-six after recording two points in the AHL Iowa Wild’s season opener. He scored eight points in 16 games with the Arizona Coyotes last season but had his season in December by a torn pectoral muscle. Boyd had managed a pair of strong seasons with Arizona in 2021-22 and 2022-23, scoring 35 and 34 points respectively. This recall will provide his first chance to work back to that stout scoring since going down with injury.

Wild Recall Jesper Wallstedt, Reassign Daemon Hunt

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Oct. 11: After Hunt was scratched as expected for yesterday’s home opener, the team announced he’s been returned to Iowa while Wallstedt is back with the NHL club. The move indicates Chisholm will likely be ready to return tomorrow against the Kraken if needed.

Oct. 10: The Wild have recalled defenseman Daemon Hunt from AHL Iowa, per a team announcement. Hunt will serve as Minnesota’s seventh defenseman while Declan Chisholm, who’s dealing with an illness, is unavailable for tonight’s home opener. Without an open roster spot to execute the transaction, the Wild sent down goaltender Jesper Wallstedt in a corresponding move. He wasn’t expected to dress tonight anyway, with Marc-André Fleury backing up Filip Gustavsson, per Michael Russo of The Athletic.

Drafted in the third round out of WHL Moose Jaw in 2020, Hunt landed in the AHL two years ago and climbed up the depth chart to make his NHL debut last season. He’s posted 41 points (6 G, 35 A) with a -2 rating in 116 games for the Iowa Wild. While a left-shot defender, he can also comfortably log time on the right side.

A strong skater with good physicality for his 6’1″, 201-lb frame, Hunt made a strong impression in training camp after logging an assist and a -1 rating in his first 12 NHL appearances in 2023-24. He’s still waiver-exempt, though, and his level of play didn’t warrant exposing a depth piece like Chisholm or Jonathon Merrill to waivers. The 22-year-old will remain waiver-exempt throughout the season and should receive frequent call-ups whenever injuries affect the Minnesota blue line.

However, Hunt will likely have to wait a bit to make his season debut in the NHL. He’s projected to sit in the press box while Merrill and Zach Bogosian comprise the Wild’s bottom pairing.

As for Wallstedt, the Wild still thoroughly plan on having him in the NHL as part of a three-goalie rotation. Since he’s one of the few waiver-exempt names on the roster, expect him to be papered down to Iowa at other points this season if Minnesota needs an open roster spot in a pinch.

Wild Sign Jesper Wallstedt To Two-Year Extension

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The Wild announced today that they’ve signed goaltender Jesper Wallstedt to a two-year, $4.4MM extension, keeping him under contract through the 2026-27 season. It’s a one-way deal in both years with a cap hit of $2.2MM.

It’s a significant commitment to a goalie with just three NHL starts under his belt, but it’s indicative of his status as arguably the best prospect at the position in the sport. Wallstedt, who turns 22 next month, was under consideration for a top-10 pick throughout most of his draft year in 2021 but ended up falling to Minnesota at No. 20 overall.

Thus far, nothing indicates they should be unhappy with the pick. The 6’3″, 214-lb netminder has kept a rather hapless AHL Iowa team afloat during his two seasons in North America, posting a 2.69 GAA, .909 SV%, three shutouts, and a 40-34-9 record in 83 appearances as their starter. He’s been outstanding in senior-level international play as well, logging a .947 SV% in three appearances for Sweden at the 2023 World Championship.

His NHL career got off to a bit of a rocky start, allowing seven goals on 34 shots in his debut against the Stars on Jan. 10 last season. But he came back with a much more solid performance in two showings against the Blackhawks and Sharks in April, stopping 51 of 53 shots he faced in those games.

He enters 2024-25 on the Wild’s opening night roster with a 2-1-0 record and .897 SV% in his brief NHL showing. He’ll look to build on that while competing with Filip Gustavsson and 40-year-old vet Marc-André Fleury for starts in a three-goalie rotation in Minnesota. He could cement himself as the No. 2 option behind Gustavsson, with Fleury’s workload likely to stay low in his final NHL season.

Wallstedt will still be an RFA upon the expiry of his extension in 2027. He won’t be eligible to test the UFA market until 2030 at the earliest.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Liam Ohgren, Jesper Wallstedt Expected To Make Wild Roster

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Minnesota is expected to maintain top prospects Liam Ohgren and Jesper Wallstedt on their opening night roster, per Michael Russo of The Athletic. Minnesota’s brass has named both players as favorites to make the team since the start of training camp.

The Wild are showing no hesitation in placing perhaps the league’s best goalie prospect – Wallstedt – into a three-man rotation with Marc-Andre Fleury and Filip Gustavsson. All three goaltenders made two appearances in the preseason, with Wallstedt leading the trio in save percentage with a .930 to Fleury’s .925 and Gustavsson’s .898.

Fleury and Gustavsson split starts last year, making 40 and 45 appearances respectively. Neither were particularly productive, each posting save percentages below .900 – a feat Fleury hadn’t managed since his rookie season of 2005-06. Those muddling performances leave plenty of room for excitement in Minnesota’s goaltending room – something Wallstedt may be able to bring quickly. The former first-round pick has posted two strong seasons as an AHL starter, collectively posting 40 wins and a .909 save percentage in 83 appearances.

Ohgren should have a much clearer path to an NHL role, having spent five preseason games on the team’s third-line. He certainly seemed comfortable in the role, posting one goal and one assist – the same statline he managed in his first four NHL games at the end of last season. An upper-body injury delayed the start of Ohgren’s 2023-24 to late November, but he played well immediately upon returning, ultimately recording 19 points in 27 games in Sweden’s SHL –  the highest scoring pace of any U20 SHL player last season. Wild general manager Bill Guerin has previously praised Ohgren’s ability to produce from any spot in the lineup, which could mean he’ll have to work his way up to a high-usage role – though a fully healthy season could make quick work of that challenge.

Both Ohgren and Wallstedt seem poised to bring big impacts to the Minnesota lineup – a welcome relief to the team that ranked in the bottom 15 of both goals scored and goals allowed last season. They’ll each be names to watch closely, as Ohgren fights for healthy footing and Wallstedt looks to claw above two proven NHL starters.

Snapshots: Gustavsson, Flyers, Khaira

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After re-signing Marc-Andre Fleury and indicating that they’d like Jesper Wallstedt to see more NHL action in 2024-25, it looked as if Filip Gustavsson was set to be on the move this summer.  That hasn’t happened as of yet and Joe Smith of The Athletic notes (subscription link) that it appears that Gustavsson will now be sticking around, meaning that Minnesota will be juggling three goalies at times when they want Wallstedt to get a look.  Gustavsson is coming off a tough year, one that saw him post a 3.06 GAA with a .899 SV% in 45 games after putting up 2.10 and .931 respectively in 2022-23.  The Wild’s cap situation will make it tricky to carry three goalies; GM Bill Guerin acknowledged that Wallstedt could be in a “hybrid” situation that sees him spend time with Minnesota and AHL Iowa as a result.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • The Flyers have added a pair of prospects to their upcoming rookie camp roster. Jonathan Bailey of Philly Hockey Now relays that goaltender Sam Hillebrandt and forward Josh Zakreski will join them in September.  Hillebrandt had a 3.67 GAA with a .899 SV% in 36 games last season with OHL Barrie while serving as the third goalie for Team USA at the World Juniors.  Zakreski, meanwhile, is their lone undrafted invitee from July’s development camp to move on to rookie camp so far.  He had 21 goals and 28 assists in 68 games in 2023-24 with WHL Portland.
  • Unrestricted free agent forward Jujhar Khaira was on Vancouver’s radar for the PTO slot that went to Sammy Blais earlier this week, report Thomas Drance and Rick Dhaliwal of The Athletic (subscription link). The 30-year-old is a veteran of 337 career NHL games but only one of those came last season as he spent most of the season with AHL Iowa where he had 18 points in 22 games.  Drance and Dhaliwal add that the Canucks have not shown interest in Nick Cousins or Milan Lucic who are also looking for a new place to play for the upcoming season.

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