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Which NHLer Is Most Likely To Seek A Contract Termination?

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The NHL has recently experienced an unusual trend: an increase in players choosing to forgo guaranteed contracts that still owe them millions to find a playing situation that better suits them. This process involves the player clearing standard waivers with the team anticipating they’ll refuse to report to their AHL affiliate, creating a breach of contract that allows the team to place the player on unconditional waivers, before ultimately finalizing the contract termination.

Last year, Brandon Saad did this by walking away from the remaining year and a half of his deal and over $3MM in salary. This summer, forward Conor Sheary followed suit, foregoing the final year of his contract and saving the Lightning $1.5MM. Just a few weeks ago, Maple Leafs forward David Kämpf also stepped back, forfeiting over $2MM in salary. More recently, Alexandre Texier left the Blues and signed with the Canadiens for roughly half his previous salary. In effect, all these players essentially halved their earnings to find situations better suited to them, raising the question: who might be the next player to break their current contract?

Dozens, if not hundreds, of players under NHL contracts could be described as unhappy with their playing time. However, most, if not all, would be satisfied with the current NHL paychecks they receive. Players such as Ryan Graves, Tristan Jarry, and Ville Husso will not be included for purposes of this article. While they are veterans who have earned good money in their NHL careers, they are still early in their lucrative new deals, and they have spent time in the AHL over the last calendar year. This piece will focus on players in a unique position regarding their contracts who might be willing to walk away from guaranteed money if they can’t be moved via trade or waivers.

Penguins forward Philip Tomasino is the top name on the list and has already been made available to every NHL team this month after he was placed on waivers by the Penguins and eventually assigned to the minors after passing through. Signed to a one-year, $1.75MM deal last offseason, many fans were surprised when the Penguins non-tendered him in the summer, only to re-sign him to that one-year pact.

The move kept his salary lower, but Tomasino has still failed to provide any value to Pittsburgh this season, with just one assist in nine NHL games. Tomasino also started slowly last year with Nashville, posting a single assist in his first 11 games before a midseason trade to Pittsburgh sparked a turnaround. Hence, a comeback isn’t out of the question.

Clearly, passing on waivers showed a complete lack of interest in Tomasino at his current price, but at league minimum, teams might be more willing to take a shot. However, the chances of that happening seem low, as the Penguins likely aren’t keen to use up a salary retention slot on him, and Tomasino likely doesn’t want to leave the highest salary he’s earned in his NHL career. There’s always a possibility that the Mississauga, Ontario native stays in the AHL for the rest of the season, but given his six points in three AHL games, he might find a way to work his way back to the NHL, just like teammates Graves and Jarry did over the past year.

Next up is a player who is nearly 10 years older than Tomasino: defenseman Erik Gustafsson of the Red Wings. Like Tomasino, Gustafsson is in the final year of his contract and trying to maintain his NHL career, but that is where many similarities end. Gustafsson is a ten-year NHL veteran nearing the end of his playing career, whereas Tomasino is just beginning his.

Not so long ago, Gustafsson was regarded as a capable third-pairing defenseman. Many praised the Red Wings for signing him to a two-year, $4MM contract in July 2024. That deal proved to be ill-fated. Gustafsson’s play declined last season, especially on the offensive side. His puck handling was sloppy, and he wasn’t the same contributor as in previous years.

This poor performance led to a demotion this season, with the 33-year-old playing most of his games in the AHL with the Grand Rapids Griffins. Credit to Gustafsson for stepping up and performing well in the AHL, but it does raise questions about whether he will finish the year in Detroit. The Wings might consider trading him or putting him on waivers (again), but given his recent play and salary, that seems unlikely.

Another factor in Gustafsson’s situation is the fact that he’s made $2MM or more in just three NHL seasons. One of these was the shortened 2020-21 season, which had a 56-game schedule, meaning Gustafsson’s $3MM AAV effectively amounted to a $2MM salary that year. This income would have been subject to deferrals, escrow, agent fees, and taxes, so Gustafsson actually received less than half of it. Aside from that, Gustafsson is nearing the end of his career and has earned somewhere in the range of $10MM-$12MM (gross income), so he probably isn’t willing to walk away from $1.5MM without at least the promise of another contract elsewhere.

Another Detroit defenseman who might seem like a contender is Justin Holl, who is also 33 years old and in the final year of his contract. Holl signed a three-year, $10.4MM deal with the Red Wings in July 2023, but that contract has proven to be poor value for Detroit. Like Gustafsson, Holl was a turnover machine last season and has ended up in the AHL this year. The signing never made much sense from the start, as Holl has always been a fairly average defenseman, and not the type you rush to overpay on July 1, which is precisely what Detroit did.

Holl is probably still an NHL defenseman and could likely find a role if he didn’t have a $3.4MM price tag attached. However, to move him, Detroit would probably need to include an asset and retain salary. Since he’s a pending UFA, they won’t go through the trouble. Considering he has earned over $15MM in his career, you would think Holl might be inclined to leave his contract early if given the chance. Still, it seems unlikely because this is probably his last big NHL payday, and he can wait until summer to sign a two-way deal for league minimum.

Another player to consider is Oilers winger Max Jones. Jones was acquired last season from the Bruins and played 19 games down the stretch, but didn’t contribute much with just a goal and an assist. Jones can skate and hit; beyond that, his abilities are pretty limited. He is in the second year of a two-year, $2MM deal, and since he’s earning one-way money, it’s unlikely he would walk away from it to pursue another job. Jones has spent the entire season in the AHL after passing through waivers in October, and he’s probably best served to ride out his current contract and hope for a promotion to the NHL. The 27-year-old is lucky to have time on his side and can look for a two-way contract in the off-season, but if he chooses to opt out, he’ll likely find a two-way league minimum deal that puts him in the same position he’s in now, just wearing a different jersey.

Other players who might consider terminating their contracts soon include Jets forward Tanner Pearson. Pearson has been receiving fourth-line minutes in Winnipeg and has faced challenging assignments in that role. He’s got just three goals and an assist in 23 games this season. However, with a $1MM salary, he might choose to stay the course and play the hand he’s been dealt. It’s unlikely that Pearson would find a team willing to give him a top-nine role at this stage of his career, so he’s probably best advised to stay in Winnipeg under contract.

Another possibility could be Oilers goaltender Connor Ingram, but his play in the AHL this season has been atrocious, with a 3-3-2 record and a .873 SV%. Ingram is making $1.95MM in the final year of his deal and is probably best served continuing to cash his cheques and trying to improve his game to get back to the NHL. Ingram is also in a position with the Oilers where it might be his best route back to an NHL lineup, given the issues Edmonton’s goaltending has faced this year.

A few final names of players who could be contenders to terminate their current contracts mutually include defensemen Daniil Miromanov of the Flames and Kyle Burroughs of the Kings, as well as forward Carl Grundström of the Flyers. These three players are in the final years of their deals, earning over $1MM this season, and are currently playing in the AHL.

Oilers Recall Max Jones And Cam Dineen On Emergency Basis

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The Oilers have added some extra depth to their roster in advance of Thursday’s game against Montreal.  The team announced that they’ve recalled winger Max Jones and defenseman Cam Dineen from AHL Bakersfield on an emergency basis.

Jones was acquired earlier this week from Boston as part of the trade that also saw them land Trent Frederic.  He signed a two-year, $2MM contract with the Bruins early in free agency last summer but didn’t spend much time with them.  Instead, he played in just seven games with Boston before passing through waivers unclaimed.

Since then, the 27-year-old had been playing in the minors with Providence before the recent swap.  In his first taste of extended action in the AHL since the 2018-19 campaign, Jones has 13 goals and eight assists through 38 outings.  If he plays for Edmonton on recall, he’s likely to be in the fourth-line role he has largely held throughout his career, one that spans 265 NHL games over parts of seven seasons.

As for Dineen, this is his second recall of the week on an emergency basis with the first being a one-day promotion.  The 26-year-old has spent the season with the Condors where he has 29 points in 45 games, six shy of his career high set back in 2022-23.  His last taste of NHL action came in 2021-22 when he got into 34 games with Arizona.

To make room on the roster, Frederic was moved to injured reserve.  Edmonton now has the maximum of 23 players on its active roster although that maximum will only be in place until Friday.

Oilers Acquire Trent Frederic

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The Oilers are acquiring forward Trent Frederic from the Bruins in a trade that will also involve the Devils as a third team, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. Winger Max Jones is also headed from Boston to Edmonton in the deal, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports. The Devils announced they’ve acquired the rights to left-wing prospect Shane Lachance from the Oilers and will retain half of Frederic’s salary in the trade after the Bruins’ initial 50% retention, bringing his cap hit for Edmonton down to $575K from $2.3MM. New Jersey also dealt the signing rights to right-winger Petr Hauser to the Oilers to complete their involvement. Edmonton announced the full trade, which reads as follows:

Oilers receive: Frederic, Jones, signing rights to Hauser
Devils receive: Signing rights to Lachance
Bruins receive: D Maximus Wanner, the Blues’ 2025 second-round pick, and the Oilers’ 2026 fourth-round pick.

Frederic is currently week-to-week with a lower-body injury, and Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic reports there’s a possibility he won’t be cleared to play until the playoffs. In that case, the Oilers could place Frederic at his reduced cap hit on long-term injured reserve to open up additional spending flexibility for further moves ahead of Friday’s deadline.

Boston selected Frederic 29th overall in the 2016 draft, ahead of higher-ceiling forwards Alex DeBrincat and Jordan Kyrou who both went in the second round. After a brief but successful two-year collegiate stint at Wisconsin, the versatile depth piece took a couple of years to simmer in the minors, only emerging as a roster regular for the Bruins in the 2020-21 campaign.

Frederic spent a pair of seasons as a fourth-line fixture without much offensive pop, but the physical 6’3″ forward popped big time in Boston’s historic 65-win season in 2022-23. Skating primarily on the wing, he recorded 17-14–31 in 79 games despite averaging under 12 minutes per night, also finishing second among Bruins forwards with 105 hits.

In addition to spending more time down the middle, Frederic amped up his production last season. The Missouri native recorded a career-high 18-22–40 scoring line in 82 games, adding 204 hits while seeing a slight bump in his special teams deployment. But despite skating a career-high 13:55 per game in 2024-25, he hasn’t been able to keep up his scoring. Snakebit like the majority of his Boston teammates, Frederic has just 8-7–15 in 57 games with a career-worst -14 rating. His shooting percentage has regressed to 10.5% after hovering north of the 14% mark the prior two years.

While the drop in point totals is concerning, he’s established his floor as a high-end fourth-line piece with middle-six upside and will likely see an uptick in production depending on how he’s deployed amid a far more talented offensive group in Edmonton. His struggles this season, his expiring contract, and Boston’s slide down the standings made it almost a guarantee he’d be moved at the deadline. The 27-year-old will be an unrestricted free agent for the first time this summer after finishing out the year with the Oilers.

Frederic has posted similar offensive numbers to the Oilers’ current pair of third-line wingers in Connor Brown and Mattias Janmark, so it’s unclear if he’ll unseat either for a top-nine role. While faceoffs aren’t his strong suit (a career average of 44.4%), his experience playing down the middle also addresses an immediate need for an Edmonton squad without a legitimate fourth-line center. He could slot in there once he’s ready to return, relieving natural wingers like Kasperi Kapanen who have had to step into the role lately.

They also pick up Jones, who amounts to a failed offseason pickup for Boston. He managed only seven appearances for the Bs after signing a two-year, $2MM deal last offseason, going without a point and averaging 10:01 per game. Selected a few spots ahead of Frederic by the Ducks in the 2016 draft, Jones will remain on his minor-league assignment after clearing waivers in November but now reports to the Oilers’ affiliate in Bakersfield. His $1MM cap hit is completely buriable in the minors and thus carries no cap impact for Edmonton. Before the move, he posted 13-8–21 with a plus-one rating in 38 games for the P-Bruins.

Rounding out Edmonton’s haul in the deal is Hauser, who New Jersey selected in the fifth round in 2022. The 21-year-old is amid a tumultuous campaign in his native Czechia, playing for three different squads across the top-level and second-tier professional leagues. He has 1-10–11 in 63 Czech Extraliga games dating back to his top-level debut in the 2022-23 season. While he has great size at 6’4″ and 207 lbs, he wasn’t considered a meaningful prospect in the Devils organization by Scott Wheeler of The Athletic in his January ranking. He’s a low-ceiling, low-floor option whose signing rights will expire in June 2026.

The Oilers give up a decently intriguing prospect in Lachance for the Devils’ additional salary retention. The son of ex-NHLer and Devils head scout Scott Lachance was the No. 6 prospect in an already-thin Edmonton system, per Wheeler. The 6’5″ winger has suited up for Boston University the past two seasons after Edmonton selected him in the sixth round in 2021, posting 23-29–52 in 72 games while also serving as captain this season. New Jersey will hold his signing rights until the Aug. 15 following his final collegiate season.

In what’s been a strong rental market, Boston landing what’s slated to be a mid-tier second-round pick is some decent work by general manager Don Sweeney. Edmonton previously acquired the second-rounder from St. Louis as compensation for signing defenseman Philip Broberg to an offer sheet last August. The Bruins didn’t have a second-rounder in this year’s draft before the trade – they traded theirs to the Capitals in the 2023 Dmitry Orlov three-team deal.

Wanner was also one of the Oilers’ more notable prospects, checking in at No. 10 in Wheeler’s rankings. The 6’3″ righty isn’t a legitimate needle-mover for a Bruins pool that lacks high-end talent, though. Now 21, he was a seventh-round pick in the 2021 draft and projects as a likely No. 7/8 option on an NHL depth chart at his peak. He’s been limited to just two points in 22 games with Bakersfield this year after posting 7-10–17 in 68 games with a +13 rating in his first pro season last year. He’ll now report to Providence.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Bruins Activate Charlie McAvoy, Reassign Max Jones

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The Bruins activated top defenseman Charlie McAvoy from injured reserve Thursday, per a team announcement. The club reassigned winger Max Jones to AHL Providence to open up a roster spot.

McAvoy has missed Boston’s last seven games with an upper-body injury. He landed on IR following a Jan. 11 game against the Panthers, during which head coach Joe Sacco said he aggravated a “nagging ailment” and would be shut down for at least a week to see how it responds. His absence lasted closer to three weeks, but he’ll return to the lineup tonight against the Jets in a top-pairing role flanked by sophomore lefty Mason Lohrei.

The lingering injury explains what’s been a down season for McAvoy. The 27-year-old has 20 points through 45 games, the lowest point-per-game pace of his eight-year NHL career. His possession metrics were dipping, too, with his +2.2 expected rating at even strength also tracking to be the worst of his career.

The 2016 first-rounder returns as Boston hangs on for dear life in a tight Eastern Conference wild-card race. Their 5-4-1 record in their last 10 has been enough to keep pace, but they’ll fall out of the picture with a loss tonight against Winnipeg and if the Lightning and Blue Jackets manage to get at least one point out of their games.

Boston went 4-2-1 in their last seven without McAvoy with a plus-one goal differential. They were outshot 241-176 during that span, however, and only controlled 45.5% of shot attempts at even strength.

Jones, 26, heads down after playing three out of four games since his Jan. 21 recall. The big-bodied winger has yet to record a point in seven games with the Bruins this season after signing a two-year, $2MM deal over the summer and passed through waivers unclaimed in early November. Selected a few spots after McAvoy by the Ducks in the 2016 draft, he has eight goals and 11 points with a plus-four rating in 26 games while on assignment to Providence this year.

Bruins Place Mark Kastelic On IR; Recall Patrick Brown, Max Jones

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Bruins depth forward Mark Kastelic’s return to the lineup was short-lived. The 25-year-old is back on injured reserve today after he was activated Saturday, per a team announcement. The move gave Boston two open roster spots, which they promptly used to recall forwards Patrick Brown and Max Jones from Providence in corresponding transactions.

Kastelic sustained an upper-body injury against the Lightning on Jan. 9 that sidelined him for two games. Given Boston’s light schedule this month, that was enough for an IR placement. He returned against the Senators, his former team, but did not play in the third period of Monday’s win over the Sharks. It’s not clear when he sustained the new injury or whether it’s a recurrence of his previous upper-body issue.

The 6’4″ pivot has four goals and a career-high 13 points in 45 games with the Bruins this season, his first in Boston after they acquired him from Ottawa in last summer’s Linus Ullmark blockbuster. His emergence as a high-end fourth-line center landed him a three-year, $4.7MM extension earlier this month, keeping him off 2025’s restricted free-agent market.

Kastelic’s 175 hits lead the Bruins, and his 55.1% faceoff percentage is second on the team behind John Beecher among Boston skaters with at least 100 draws. His 11:11 average time on ice is a career-high, although he remains uninvolved on either special teams unit.

The Bruins are now down two-thirds of their usually effective fourth line. Winger Cole Koepke has missed the last two contests with an upper-body injury and landed on injured reserve over the weekend.

Brown and Jones come up as reinforcements for the injured pair ahead of Wednesday’s game against the Devils. At least one will enter the lineup with Kastelic out, although Koepke will technically be eligible to return and Trent Frederic may be an option after missing the San Jose tilt with an illness.

Brown, 32, last suited up for the Bruins on Nov. 14 in what remains his only NHL appearance in 2024-25. The right-shot center is in the back half of a two-year, $1.6MM contract that he’s mostly spent collecting a one-way paycheck in the minors, where he has 20 goals, 37 assists, 57 points and a +20 rating in 79 games for Providence since the beginning of 2023-24. He was anointed captain of the P-Bruins this year, the third AHL franchise where he’s held the honor, and ranks third on the team in scoring with 25 points through 37 games.

Jones, 26, hasn’t panned out after inking a two-year, $2MM contract in free agency last summer. The 2016 first-rounder started the season on the Bruins’ roster, but he hit waivers and cleared them in November after posting a minus-four rating and no points through four appearances and routinely sitting in the press box.

The longtime Ducks depth winger has 11 points in 26 games with Providence, his first minor-league action since the 2019-20 campaign. The 6’3″, 216-lb winger was shelled defensively for a 29.7 CF% and a whopping 6.7 GA/60 at even strength in his quartet of NHL appearances early in the year.

As for Kastelic, the IR placement rules him out of the Bruins’ next three games. He’ll be eligible for activation ahead of their game against the Sabres on Jan. 28.

Bruins Place Max Jones On Waivers

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Nov. 6: Jones cleared waivers, per Friedman. He’s on his way to the AHL.

Nov. 5: The Bruins have placed winger Max Jones on waivers with intentions to assign him to AHL Providence, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports Tuesday.

Jones, 26, is in the first season of a two-year, $2MM contract he signed with Boston over the summer after being non-tendered by the Ducks. Despite his seven-figure cap hit, he’s played sparingly this season. He’s been scratched for nine out of the Bruins’ 13 games this season, including their back-to-back contests against the Flyers and Kraken over the weekend. When dressed, he’s averaged 11:13 per game and has no points and a -4 rating. His possession numbers have been abysmal – the Bruins control just 29.7% of shot attempts and 14.3% of expected goals with Jones on the ice at even strength.

With Tyler Johnson now in the fold after finally inking a one-year, league-minimum deal yesterday following a months-long stint on a professional tryout, there was likely a corresponding roster move coming. It wasn’t out of necessity – Boston was at the 23-man roster limit with no rush to open space – but they’ve only carried one extra forward and one extra defenseman this season. Given that Jones ranks last on the team in nearly every meaningful statistic, it’s no surprise that he hit the wire.

If Jones clears waivers, it would mark his first AHL assignment in five years. The Anaheim 2016 first-round pick last played for their AHL affiliate in San Diego in the 2018-19 campaign.

All of Jones’ 31 career goals and 62 career points have come in a Ducks jersey. He made 258 regular-season appearances for the team over six years before being let go in June.

The Bruins will clear Jones’ $1MM cap hit tomorrow, regardless of whether he’s claimed. If he makes it through waivers and is subsequently assigned to Providence, that cap hit is below the $1.15MM maximum buriable threshold, so it won’t count against Boston’s books. He’s still under contract through the 2025-26 campaign and will be an unrestricted free agent upon expiry.

Atlantic Notes: Knies, Marchand, Lindholm, Zub, Jones

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The choice by Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube to make forward Matthew Knies an alternate captain for the team on Saturday night has led some to believe the organization is looking to keep him around for the long haul. In Monday’s ’32 Thoughts episode with Elliotte Friedman, the host said, “I think (Matthew) Knies is on the precipice of being a really long-term important piece of the Toronto Maple Leafs. He’s heading into the last year of his ELC and I think there have been some conversations about it. I don’t know how much or in-depth they have really talked about it, but there have been some rumors that there have been some conversations“.

It’s not a shocking report by any stretch of the imagination as Knies has been a top prospect for the Maple Leafs over the past several years. The former 57th overall pick of the 2021 NHL Draft finally became a full-time player in Toronto last season scoring 15 goals and 35 points in 80 games. He’s a popular candidate to play the wing with captain Auston Matthews and on the Maple Leafs’ second powerplay unit.

There haven’t been any specifics regarding extension conversations between Toronto and Knies but Elliotte’s report indicates the team would like to lock him down for quite some time. The team may want to get started on that sooner rather than later as Knies’ asking price will inevitably rise if he plays well on a line with Matthews for much of the year.

Other Atlantic notes:

  • According to the team, the Boston Bruins are improving on the injury front as forwards Brad Marchand and Elias Lindholm will return to the lineup tonight against the Flyers. Marchand had been recovering from several surgeries in the offseason and is making good on his promise that he would be ready for the regular season opener. Lindholm has spent the last few days practicing in a non-contact jersey for the Bruins with an undisclosed injury but it appears his ailment is now behind him.
  • Similarly to the Bruins, the Ottawa Senators are also receiving positive news on the injury front with defenseman Artem Zub returning to the lineup this evening (X Link). Zub’s been dealing with a lower-body injury for much of the preseason but it appears he will be ready for the regular season barring any setbacks. The Russian defenseman will now have three games to get back to game speed as he’s failed to appear in a contest up to this point.
  • Moving back to Boston — Conor Ryan of The Boston Globe reports forward Max Jones is getting closer to returning to the lineup. Jones is another Bruins forward that has failed to appear in a preseason contest but he should be ready for the regular season. Boston signed Jones this summer after being non-tendered by the Anaheim Ducks to serve in the team’s bottom-six. He’s coming off one of his better offensive seasons with the Ducks scoring five goals and 15 points in 52 games last year.

Atlantic Notes: Lysell, Lindholm, Jones, Ullmark

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Boston Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery gave a rare public call-out today to one of the team’s young prospects. Scott McLaughlin of The Skate Pod shared a quote from Montgomery regarding forward Fabian Lysell saying, “he needs to do a little more than he’s done if he wants to make the Bruins“.

Lysell skated in 14:56 of the Bruins’ preseason loss on Sunday to the New York Rangers. The 21-year-old Swede played right wing for Boston on the team’s third line and didn’t find his name on the scoresheet as he failed to even put a shot on goal. The former 21st overall pick of the 2021 NHL Draft is looking to crack the Bruins’ roster this season after totaling 110 regular season games for the organization’s AHL affiliate, the Providence Bruins.

He’s been productive in the AHL with 29 goals and 87 points over two years in Providence. The major factor working against Lysell is that Boston is again one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference heading into the 2024-25 NHL season and the top-six of their forward core is largely set in stone. Lysell doesn’t have much flexibility to his game meaning the Bruins don’t have the confidence to plug him into the team’s bottom six.

Other Atlantic notes:

  • A few new members of the Bruins are nursing mild injuries with Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub reporting that forwards Elias Lindholm and Max Jones are both day-to-day this week and likely won’t play. Lindholm signed a long-term seven-year $54.25MM contract with Boston this summer and is expected to take over first-line minutes for the team down the middle with Pavel Zacha being moved to the wing. Jones joined the Bruins on a two-year, $2MM pact after being non-tendered by the Anaheim Ducks and is expected to be a physical player Boston can plug into their bottom six.
  • Former Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark is dealing with an ailment but he’s not expected to be out long-term. Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen reports the Ottawa Senators are being cautious with their new netminder but he is “going to be fine”. The Senators are eager for Ullmark to fill a major void on the roster this season as the 2022-23 Vezina Trophy winner posted a .924 SV% in 130 games for Boston from 2021-2024.

Bruins Sign Max Jones, Jordan Oesterle, Three Others

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The Bruins have signed winger Max Jones in free agency, the team announced. It’s a two-year deal, per Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub. He’ll earn $1MM per season, Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald reports. Jones became a UFA after not receiving a qualifying offer from the Ducks yesterday. Additionally, Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub reports they’re signing veteran depth defender Jordan Oesterle to a two-year, two-way deal.

Boston later announced they’ve also signed forward Riley Tufte to a one-year contract.. They’ve also signed 28-year-old right-shot defenseman Billy Sweezey to a two-year, two-way deal with a $775K cap hit, per PuckPedia. Anderson also reports they’re signing former Lightning forward Cole Koepke to a two-way deal.

Jones showed some flashes of being an impactful power forward with Anaheim but struggled with injuries and consistency.  The 26-year-old played in 52 games last season, picking up five goals and ten assists while picking up a career-high 127 hits which wasn’t enough to earn his qualifier.  Jones will likely play a similar role with Boston as he did with the Ducks, playing an energy role in their bottom six.

Oesterle had been a full-timer on an NHL roster for six straight years before last season.  He inked a one-year deal with Calgary last summer but split the season between the Flames and AHL Wranglers.  The 32-year-old had two assists in 22 games with Calgary but was much more productive in the minors, picking up 19 points in 30 games.  Oesterle should have a chance to battle for a spot at the end of Boston’s roster in training camp but is likely ticketed for AHL Providence to start next season.

Tufte comes over after spending a year in Colorado’s system.  The 26-year-old got into five games with the Avs last season, picking up a goal and an assist.  He was one of the top scorers for the AHL Eagles, tallying 23 goals and 22 assists in 67 contests.  Standing 6’6, Tufte could get a look on Boston’s fourth line in training camp but otherwise should be in line for a big role with Providence as well.

Sweezey spent the last three seasons with Columbus, primarily playing with AHL Cleveland.  The 28-year-old got into 57 games with the Monsters last season, picking up a goal and three assists along with 73 penalty minutes and will be counted on to play a similar role on the third pairing in Providence.  Sweezey also has nine career NHL appearances under his belt, all in the 2022-23 campaign.

Koepke, meanwhile, got into nine games with the Lightning last season, picking up two assists along with 23 hits despite averaging less than seven minutes a night.  He was a capable secondary scorer at the AHL level as well, recording 20 goals and 19 assists in 53 contests.  The 26-year-old has 26 career NHL games to his credit where he has three points.  It’s expected he’ll start with Providence as well unless he lands a spot on Boston’s fourth line in the fall.

Ducks Notes: Verbeek, McTavish, Jones

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Derek Lee of The Sporting Tribune is reporting that Anaheim Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek has already started to build his offseason shopping list as he looks to help the team emerge from a long rebuild. The Ducks placed seventh in the Pacific Division and finished well out of the playoffs this season once again. Anaheim hasn’t made the playoffs since the 2017-18 season but did win four more games this year than last season.

Lee reports that Verbeek is looking to reshape Anaheim’s bottom six by adding some speed and grit to the third and fourth lines and he reportedly would also like to add a right-handed defenseman to play alongside the many left-handed defensemen on the team.

In other Ducks notes:

  • Derek Lee also reported that Ducks forward Mason McTavish is dealing with a sprained MCL in his knee but shouldn’t require offseason surgery. The 21-year-old didn’t play in the final six games of Anaheim’s season and was spotted wearing a knee brace two weeks ago as he dealt with the injury. McTavish finished his second full NHL season with 19 goals and 23 assists in 64 games this season and should compete for a role on the Ducks’ top two lines next season.
  • Lee also tweeted that Ducks winger Max Jones is dealing with an injury as the former first-round pick has a separated shoulder. The light-scoring 26-year-old missed the final 11 games of the regular season with the injury and finished the year with five goals and 10 assists in 52 games. Jones played the season under a $1.295MM cap hit and is a restricted free agent on July 1st. He will require a qualifying offer of $1.5MM and given his lack of offensive production, the Ducks may opt to not qualify Jones and let him become an unrestricted free agent.

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