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Lucas Raymond

Short-Term Absences: Raymond, Foligno, Samuelsson

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At least for now, the Red Wings are exhaling that the news isn’t worse regarding the health of star winger Lucas Raymond. He won’t play tonight but is only considered day-to-day with an upper-body injury, the team announced. Raymond left Monday’s win over the Maple Leafs midway through the second period after taking a cross-check into the boards from Toronto defenseman Chris Tanev (video via B/R Open Ice). There was initial fear and speculation that he may have sustained something as serious as a collarbone fracture, but he was back on the ice for morning skate today, according to the team’s Daniella Bruce. He might not even miss a full week, considering there’s been no injured reserve placement. Through two and a half appearances, Raymond had scored twice and added an assist with a +3 rating in what’s otherwise been an iffy start at even strength for Detroit’s top line of him, Dylan Larkin, and rookie Emmitt Finnie.

More short-term absences of note from around the league:

  • The Blackhawks announced that captain Nick Foligno will be taking a “brief” leave of absence and will miss tonight’s game against the Blues. He’s stepping away to be with his family as his daughter undergoes a follow-up surgery related to her congenital heart disease. All of us at PHR send our best wishes to the Foligno family. You can visit their foundation for heart health, The Heart’s Playbook, at this link.
  • Sabres defenseman Mattias Samuelsson has been ruled out for tonight’s game against the Senators, according to Paul Hamilton of WGR Sports Radio 550. His absence shouldn’t last much longer, though. He skated on his own today and could be an option to play this weekend, head coach Lindy Ruff said. Samuelsson remains on the active roster after departing last weekend’s loss to the Bruins early. He’s only missed one game so far.

Injury Notes: Sharks, Tkachuk, Raymond, Koepke

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San Jose Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky told the media today that forward Will Smith is currently dealing with a lower-body issue, and while he should still be in line to play in tomorrow’s game, Warsofsky did note that this ailment is something Smith has been dealing with since even before Saturday’s game. In addition to providing detail on an injury to Smith, Warsofsky also revealed that 2025 second-overall pick Michael Misa will make his NHL debut tomorrow.

Misa, 18, will make his NHL debut in what is the Sharks’ third game of the season. Tomorrow’s contest will not just be Misa’s NHL debut, it will also be his first regular-season game of professional hockey, as he was drafted out of the OHL. According to San Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng, Misa was slotted into the Sharks’ third-line center position in today’s practice, hinting at how he’s likely to be used in his NHL debut. Given that the Sharks put Misa in between two players who have experience playing center at the NHL level (Ty Dellandrea and Philipp Kurashev) it appears Warsofsky may be trying to ease Misa, as much as possible, into the level of responsibility that comes with playing center at the NHL level.

Other injury updates from around the league:

  • Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reported today that Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk was forced out of the team’s loss to the Nashville Predators today, stating that he is currently being evaluated for an injury after being on the other end of a Roman Josi cross-checking minor penalty. Tkachuk only managed to skate in 13:53 in today’s game, and although there is no further information other than Tkachuk being under evaluation, any injury he could suffer would be a serious blow to the Senators. He is among the team’s most important wingers and has started off the season with three assists in three games.
  • Detroit Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond was forced out of today’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs due to an upper-body injury, and head coach Todd McLellan did not issue an update on the forward’s status post-game. As Detroit’s leading scorer in each of the last two seasons, Raymond has emerged as one of the Red Wings’ most important players, and their undisputed most lethal offensive threat. While we await further information on Raymond’s injury, Red Wings fans will likely have their fingers crossed that his absence was more precautionary than anything else.
  • The Winnipeg Jets announced today that forward Cole Koepke did not return to today’s victory over the New York Islanders due to a lower-body injury. Koepke was playing on the Jets’ fourth line alongside Morgan Barron and Tanner Pearson, and had registered an assist on Barron’s goal early in today’s game on Long Island. At this point, there is no further update on Koepke’s status. The Jets have 25-year-old Providence College product Parker Ford on their roster ready to enter the lineup should Koepke miss any time.

Team Sweden Announces 2025 World Championship Roster

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Team Sweden has announced their roster for the upcoming 2025 IIHF World Championships. The ’Tre Konor’ will look to finish higher than third place in the international tournament for the first time since 2018.

The team will look similar to the one Sweden brought to the 4 Nations Face-Off in February. Filip Forsberg, Lucas Raymond, and Mika Zibanejad will reprise their roles as Sweden’s top forwards, while Rasmus Andersson and Jonas Brodin will lead the defensive core.

Unfortunately, the team will be without forward William Eklund for the tournament due to offseason wrist surgery. Sweden is expected to announce Eklund’s replacement in the coming days. The rest of Team Sweden’s roster is as follows:

F Mikael Backlund (Flames)
F Anton Bengtsson (Rögle BK)
F Leo Carlsson (Ducks)
F Christoffer Ehn (Linköping HC)
F Filip Forsberg (Predators)
F Max Friberg (Frölunda HC)
F Jesper Frödén (ZSC Lions)
F Marcus Johansson (Wild)
F Elias Lindholm (Bruins)
F Isac Lundeström (Ducks)
F Lucas Raymond (Red Wings)
F Alexander Wennberg (Sharks)
F Mika Zibanejad (Rangers)

D Rasmus Andersson (Flames)
D Jonas Brodin (Wild)
D Gabriel Carlsson (EV Zug)
D Simon Edvinsson (Red Wings)
D Adam Larsson (Kraken)
D Marcus Pettersson (Canucks)

G Samuel Ersson (Flyers)
G Jacob Markström (Devils)
G Arvid Söderblom (Blackhawks)

Snapshots: Sharks, Johnson, Red Wings

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The San Jose Sharks continue to miss defensemen Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Shakir Mukhamadulin, as well as goaltender Yaroslav Askarov, as all three recover from injury. Mercury News’ Curtis Pashelka shared that, with only three skates remaining before San Jose’s season begins, it’s unlikely any of the trio are ready for opening day.

That’s a tremendous blow to the Sharks’ early roster, taking out not only longtime lineup-lock Vlasic and his rookie replacement Mukhamadulin, but also delaying Askarov’s debut after the team paid a pretty penny to acquire him via trade. San Jose sent top prospect David Edstrom, a first-round pick, and goaltender Magnus Chrona away to bring in Askarov, looking to strike while his iron is hot after two standout AHL seasons. Askarov is considered one of the – if not thee – top goalie prospects across the NHL, and requested a trade out of Nashville after the Preds signed Juuse Saros to a long-term deal. It was clear he was looking to land in a vacant role – something he achieved in bunches with a move to San Jose, who have iced 11 goalies over the last three seasons alone. Askarov will look to become the first to solidify a starting role among that bunch when he’s healthy enough to make his Sharks debut.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Buffalo Sabres defenseman Ryan Johnson has suffered a lower-body injury, AHL head coach Mike Leone shared with Bill Hoppe of the Times Herald. Leone designated Johnson as day-to-day. Johnson is fighting to regain his role in the NHL, having been assigned to the minor leagues after playing in half of Buffalo’s games last season. He only managed seven assists in those 41 appearances, adding nine assists in 27 AHL games after his assignment. It was Johnson’s first season of pro hockey, and he’ll enter year two still searching for his first pro goal.
  • Both Lucas Raymond (lower-body) and Erik Gustafsson (upper-body) are expected to return to the Detroit Red Wings’ preseason lineup on Monday after missing some of the team’s practices to recover from injury, shares Ansar Khan of MLive. Both players seem headed for confident lineup roles, but have only managed one appearance in the preseason. Gustafsson recorded a primary assist in the outing, while Raymond didn’t change his statline in just 12 minutes of ice time. Wings fans will get to see their star scoring-winger, and one of their few offensive-minded defenders, return soon.

Red Wings Sign Lucas Raymond To Eight-Year Extension

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One major domino has fallen for the Detroit Red Wings as the team announced an eight-year, $64.6MM extension for forward Lucas Raymond. The deal will pay Raymond an AAV of $8.075MM over the life of the contract and he will don the winged wheel until the 2031-32 NHL season. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun later reported that there are no signing bonuses within the contract and Raymond will be granted a no-trade clause for the last four years.

It ends a summer of uncertainty for Raymond as the Red Wings waited until just three days before training camp to lock up one of their most promising forwards. Detroit still needs to sign restricted free agent defenseman Moritz Seider to a deal before the start of the year and will now have just under $8.75MM available in cap space to do so.

The Red Wings selected Raymond with the fourth overall pick of the 2020 NHL Draft in the second year of general manager Steve Yzerman’s tenure. He spent that year and the next with the SHL’s Frolunda HC scoring 10 goals and 28 points in 67 games from 2019-2021.

Raymond joined the Red Wings without ever having played a game for their AHL affiliate in Grand Rapids making his NHL in the 2021-22 season. Raymond skated in all 82 games for Detroit scoring 23 goals and 57 points finishing fourth in Calder Trophy voting behind Michael Bunting, Trevor Zegras, and Seider. He quickly became the most effective forward on the team behind Tyler Bertuzzi and Dylan Larkin after finishing third in scoring, third in shot attempts, and third in CorsiFor%.

He took a small step backward in his sophomore campaign as he only put up 17 goals and 45 points in 74 contests. Nearly every aspect of Raymond’s game depressed after his rookie season from the eye test to more advanced statistics. Most of the blame could be that Raymond totaled 96 games from 2019-2021 and was now called upon to play 164 against the world’s best hockey talent.

Raymond showed off his full potential in the 2023-24 season by scoring 31 goals and 72 points in 82 games leading the team in the latter category. He finished 21st in goal-scoring in the Eastern Conference and 24th in points. His 19.0% shooting percentage dramatically eclipsed his career average of 12.6% and his takeaways almost doubled his giveaways.

He has not shown much defensive prowess up to this point but the Red Wings should receive good value on this deal if he can reach a point-per-game level. He is second in scoring amongst all players selected in the 2020 NHL Draft behind Tim Stutzle of the Ottawa Senators and he does not appear close to losing that position.

Raymond will be entering his age 30 season at the end of this contract which positions him well to land another pay day in the future. The Red Wings are looking to return to the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since the 2015-16 season and the team hopes that Raymond will be a major piece in their renaissance.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Snapshots: Red Wings, Broberg, Islanders

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As the Red Wings work through the process of signing their two top remaining RFAs in defenseman Moritz Seider and winger Lucas Raymond, Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press suggests that their preference is to keep the cap hit for both players below Dylan Larkin’s $8.7MM price tag.  With the price tag for top blueliners coming off their entry-level deals going up relatively quickly, Seider has some comparables past the $8MM mark (Ottawa’s Jake Sanderson and Buffalo’s Owen Power) so it wouldn’t be surprising to see his cost come in relatively close to Larkin’s.  Raymond, meanwhile, might be using Ottawa’s Tim Stutzle ($8.35MM) as a possible comparable which could result in his cost coming close to the captain’s as well.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

  • While the Blues handed a pricey contract to get Philip Broberg from Edmonton via an offer sheet this summer, Matthew DeFranks of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch relays that the blueliner probably won’t see power play action right away, even without Torey Krug who is out for the season. Broberg had 39 points in 47 games with AHL Bakersfield last season but head coach Drew Bannister has indicated that their plan for the 23-year-old at this point is to have him killing penalties and that they don’t want to load up on his workload too fast after having a limited role with the Oilers.
  • In his media availability yesterday (video link), Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello indicated that there probably won’t be much of a battle for roster spots on the back end in training camp. Their top six is healthy after an injury-riddled year and their preference is to not have prospects Calle Odelius and Isaiah George in a reserve role to start the season.  Accordingly, the battle for the seventh and final defensive spot in camp could be between returnees Simon Bolduc and Dennis Cholowski.  Bolduc is now waiver-eligible which could help give him a leg up in that battle since Cholowski has cleared successfully in the past.

Morning Notes: Raymond, Whitehead, Walsh

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Elliotte Friedman spoke on the 32 Thoughts podcast about the Detroit Red Wings negotiations with forward Lucas Raymond. Friedman had used recently signed Hurricanes forward Seth Jarvis as a comparable contract for Raymond stating that his $7.42MM cap hit was likely what Raymond’s camp was using in negotiations. However, Friedman informed his audience that a player agent told him that Raymond’s agent is more than likely using a higher comparable and mentioned Senators forward Tim Stützle and his eight-year $66.8MM contract.

Friedman added that there is little chance that Yzerman would accept that comparison and Stützle’s $8.35MM AAV. Stützle signed that contract extension after posting 58 points in 79 games, which was a good season, but not worth that number. At that time the Ottawa Senators were desperate to show their market that they were ready to contend and gave Stützle an above-market deal that now looks like a bargain. Friedman thinks that the Jarvis comparable is probably too low at this stage, which likely means that a Raymond extension will fall between the cap hits of Jarvis and Stützle.

In other morning notes:

  • Greg Wyshynski of ESPN is reporting that Braxton Whitehead of the Western Hockey League’s Regina Pats has received a verbal commitment from Arizona State University that would open the door for him to play in the NCAA in the 2025-26 season. Whitehead is the first Canadian Hockey League player to receive a commitment from the NCAA since a class action lawsuit was proposed against the NCAA and 10 universities last month that claimed the eligibility rules around the league violated antitrust laws.  The class action suit is looking to allow players to play hockey in college as well as major junior, something that would be a massive change from the current paradigm.
  • NHL player agent Allen Walsh also tweeted in regard to Whitehead’s news saying that he’s heard from several NCAA head coaches who expected that there will be former CHL players dressing in the NCAA as early as next season. The current NCAA eligibility rules don’t allow any player who has played a major junior hockey game to play college hockey in the United States, however, the aforementioned class action lawsuit could turn that rule on its head depending on how it plays out.

RFA Notes: Raymond, Berggren, Pelletier, Perfetti

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The Detroit Red Wings are making progress on a long-term contract with star forward Lucas Raymond, shares David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period. Raymond is one of three restricted free agents still awaiting a deal from the Red Wings, alongside winger Jonatan Berggren and defender Moritz Seider.

Pagnotta added that talks between Raymond and Detroit have picked up over the last 10 days, but that the two sides are, “still grinding away at it.” The Red Wings kick off training camp on September 18th.

While Seider was Detroit’s unrivaled top defender last season, it’s Raymond who feels like the chore that needs done. The 22-year-old winger broke out this season, leading the Red Wings in scoring with a career-high 31 goals and 72 points in 82 games, topping his previous high of 23 goals and 57 points set as a rookie. He’s now up to 174 points in 238 career games, and stands as perhaps the most promising player on a Wings lineup in flux. His next contract will likely eat up the bulk of Detroit’s remaining $17.648MM in cap space, though the Wings will need to walk a fine line to not price themselves out of a similarly-hefty deal for Seider.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Pagnotta also mentioned that Detroit and Berggren are expected to agree to a contract before the start of training camp, though the deal will hinge on the final price given to Raymond and/or Seider. Berggren led the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins in scoring with 56 points in 53 games last season. It was Berggren’s first year back in the minors, after playing through his NHL rookie season in 2022-23 – ending with 15 goals and 28 points in 67 games. Detroit will have plenty of room to award hard-workers at training camp with NHL ice time to start the season – a group Berggren will hope to lead after signing a new deal.
  • Detroit’s forward momentum with their RFAs hasn’t trickled up to Canada, with the Calgary Flames still far off from a deal with RFA forward Jakob Pelletier, per TSN’s Salim Nadim Valji. Valji adds that things could change quickly but are, for now, quiet. Pelletier has become a fan-favorite prospect, solidified by his routinely strong performances in the minor leagues. The 23-year-old has 111 points through 119 AHL games, but has struggled to translate that production to the top flight, with just 10 points in 37 career NHL games. Like Detroit, Calgary stands a chance to award young players with strong lineup roles. Pelletier seems a favorite to handle one of those spots, though he’ll first need to bridge the gap in quiet negotiations.
  • Winnipeg is going through sluggish talks of their own with RFA winger Cole Perfetti, who has yet to hear back on a firm offer reports Pagnotta. Perfetti potted 19 goals and 38 points in 71 games last year – but looked capable of much more with a stronger role in the lineup. He’s 22, and carries an admirable 75 points and 140 games of NHL experience. Those numbers fall closely in line with Senators centerman Shane Pinto, who recently signed a two-year, $7MM extension after missing the bulk of the 2023-24 campaign. That deal stands as Perfetti’s strongest comparable, though it may be hard to bear for a Winnipeg team with just $5.776MM in remaining cap space.

Evening Notes: Red Wings, Bouchard, Obvintsev

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Max Bultman of The Athletic believes that the length of the Detroit Red Wings contract negotiations with Lucas Raymond and Moritz Seider may have cost the Red Wings some money in the long run. Raymond and Seider remain unsigned as training camps are quickly approaching and Bultman believes that comparable contract extensions signed this summer may have only increased the asking price for both unsigned Red Wings.

Bultman cites Brock Faber’s eight-year, $8.5 million AAV contract as a potential floor for Seider’s new deal and adds that he believes both players will sign new deals before training camp and that should ease any tensions that might exist. However, Bultman does note that having two young core pieces unsigned this late in the summer might not be great for team morale.

In other evening notes:

  • Jim Matheson of The Edmonton Journal tweeted that he believes Edmonton Oilers defenseman Evan Bouchard could get a $10MM AAV on his next deal with the Oilers. The 24-year-old is set to count just $3.9MM against the cap next season in the second year of a two-year deal and is coming off a year in which he registered 18 goals and 64 assists in 81 games. The 10th overall pick in 2018 has matured into one of the most prolific puck-movers in the NHL in just five seasons and has not only produced in the regular season but has been elite in the playoffs as well with 13 goals and 45 assists in 53 career playoff games. If Bouchard does indeed get an AAV at that rate, it will make for a tight salary cap for the Oilers who will also have to consider a Connor McDavid extension.
  • Steven Ellis of Leafs Nation wonders if the Toronto Maple Leafs might have drafted a hidden gem in goaltender Timofei Obvintsev. The Maple Leafs selected the 6’4” Russian 157th overall in this year’s NHL entry draft and it may have been a shrewd move given that NHL teams hold Russian players’ rights indefinitely and goaltenders tend to develop slower. The 19-year-old hasn’t seen a ton of action the last two seasons, dressing in just 28 games, but scouts are raving about his quick hands and ability to direct pucks with his blocker out of harm’s way. As Ellis points out, Obvintsev is likely years away from being NHL-ready, but the team can be patient with him and give him time to develop his game.

East Notes: Raymond, Berggren, Voronkov, Capitals

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The Red Wings still have three restricted free agents to re-sign, defenseman Moritz Seider along with wingers Lucas Raymond and Jonatan Berggren.  In a recent appearance on the NHL Network (video link), David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period relayed that while there’s no concern on either side yet, talks don’t appear to be progressing between Detroit and Raymond’s camp.  The 22-year-old is coming off his entry-level deal and had a breakout showing last season, recording 31 points and 41 assists in 82 games, leading some to suggest that a long-term agreement between the two sides is likely to push past the $7MM mark per season.

Berggren, meanwhile, was largely a regular for the Red Wings in 2022-23 but spent most of last season with AHL Grand Rapids, tallying 24 goals and 32 assists in 53 games.  The 24-year-old also collected six points in 13 games with Detroit.  Pagnotta reports that a deal between the two sides is expected before training camp and it’s likely to be a short-term agreement.  With a little over $17MM in cap space per PuckPedia, it’s possible that the eventual contracts with Seider and Raymond could dictate how short of a deal Berggren ultimately receives.

More from the Eastern Conference:

  • Dating back to last season, there was speculation that Blue Jackets winger Dmitri Voronkov might want to return to the KHL. In an interview with Championat’s Dmitry Storozhev, Ak Bars GM Marat Valiullin acknowledged that he spoke with Voronkov after last season, presumably to gauge his interest in returning to the KHL but no discussions have taken place since then.  The 23-year-old had a solid rookie season last year, notching 18 goals and 16 assists in 75 games and is someone that Columbus will undoubtedly be looking to keep beyond the upcoming season when his current contract expires.
  • While the Capitals have already inked a PTO agreement with Jakub Vrana, don’t expect them to be signing any others. GM Chris Patrick recently told NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti (Twitter link) that he doesn’t envision bringing in any more players on tryouts for training camp.  Washington has shaken up their roster a fair bit this summer, bringing in Pierre-Luc Dubois, Andrew Mangiapane, Jakob Chychrun, Matt Roy, and Logan Thompson (and others) so allowing the newcomers to get some early chemistry may be the focal point at camp.  If that’s the case, bringing in other players with an outside shot of making the team would run counter to that objective.

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