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Blue Jackets’ Pyotr Andreyanov Signs Five-Year Deal In Russia

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Columbus Blue Jackets goalie prospect Pyotr Andreyanov has signed a five-year deal with CSKA of Russia’s KHL, per Aaron Portzline of The Athletic. The deal will carry Andreyanov through his age-23 season in Russia’s top flight. Andreyanov was recently selected 20th overall in the 2025 NHL Draft. Notably, the deal includes an NHL release clause after the fourth season, according to Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers.

This move may come as a shock to many after Columbus selected Andreyanov about 20 spots earlier than many predicted. But sources available to ProHockeyRumors have indicated that the netminder’s plan to sign long-term in Russia was arranged before the draft took place, and comes with a clear intention to move to North America when the deal concludes. That’s excellent news for the Blue Jackets, who land another Russian phenom with this selection.

Andreyanov is lauded as one of Russia’s best goalies in recent memory. He posted a dazzling 23-6-6 record and .942 save percentage through 37 games in the MHL – Russia’s U21 league – this season. That performance gave mere decimals away from breaking the league’s save percentage record among draft-age goalies. That mark is currently held by New York’s Igor Shesterkin (.947).

Andreyanov earned that flashy season on the back of impressive athleticism. He was regarded by many as both the fastest and most controlled goaltender in the class, with an exceptional ability to track the puck and stay locked in between movements. He doesn’t get bogged down by traffic and shows the sly-grin determination to stop every chance that comes his way. Andreyanov is an exceptional goalie talent in many regards – and while his sharp and explosive movements can sometimes land him outside of his crease, there’s a shortlist of other Russians who would place above the CSKA Red Army netminder.

Columbus will add Andreyanov to an already stacked pipeline of goalie prospects. He’ll join compatriot Sergei Ivanov – a 2023 fifth-round pick – at the top of the Blue Jackets’ list. Ivanov posted a .911 save percentage with HK Sochi – often a bottom-ranked club in the KHL – this season. He had a much better save percentage of .943 in 38 KHL games last year. With Andreyanov and Ivanov in the system, the Blue Jackets could soon be relieved of their goalie concerns, once they convince top Russians to come overseas.

Afternoon Notes: Byram, Gulyayev, Bump

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The Buffalo Sabres are presently at risk of losing restricted-free agent defenseman Bowen Byram to the heaps of interest from around the league. He has been mentioned as a candidate for an offer sheet or trade, with a heap of Western Conference teams swirling around both options. The Sabres have already expressed their intent to match any offer sheet that comes across their desk, though Sean McIndoe of The Athletic points out an important contingency to that idea in his latest newsletter. Matching an offer sheet would only set Buffalo up to repeat this song-and-dance again next season, when Byram would be just one year removed from unrestricted-free agency. They’d be better off making a decision about him sooner rather than later, unless their intent is to push Byram back onto Rasmus Dahlin’s side.

That could end up a lucrative approach for the Sabres. Byram posted 38 points and nearly 23 minutes in average ice time – both career-highs – while playing in Buffalo’s top-four last season. His overall performances left many wanting more, but the then-23-year-old Byram seemed to add a layer of smooth confidence to his overall game. A full year, and 100 games, of familiarity in the Sabres lineup could be enough to set up a breakout campaign next year – though all updates seem to point towards a split being inevitable. Buffalo will need to be careful with their handling of Byram. Their decisions over the next few weeks will be among the biggest headlines through the remaining summer.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Colorado Avalanche Director of Player Development Brian Willsie shared that the club is hoping that defense prospect Mikhail Gulyayev will come over from Russia at the end of the 2025-26 seaosn, per Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette. Gulyayev played through his second full year in the KHL this season – notching seven goals and 15 points in 67 games played. He added an additional three points in 13 postseason games. The total year falls closely in line with the 15 points that Gulyayev scored in 76 total games last year. He’s among the team’s top prospects, and is their most recent first-round selection still on the roster. Getting that kind of talent overseas and in a Colorado jersey will be important priority as the Avalanche look to stay fresh through the next few years.
  • The Philadelphia Flyers intend to give top prospect Alex Bump every chance to make the team’s roster out of training camp, per Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia. Bump was the motor to Western Michigan University’s engine last season, and managed 23 goals and 47 points in 42 games as the Broncos pushed for to their first national championship in school history. Bump was just as impressive last season, when he scored 36 points in 38 games as a freshman. He finished the year with nine total games in the AHL, where he scored five points. He’s a high-energy and physical winger who seems bound for success at the next level.

Blues Pushing For Bowen Byram Trade

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The St. Louis Blues are set on continuing their overhaul this season. On the heels of announcing a new logo, trading a top rookie, and waiving a long-term veteran – the Blues are now aggressively pushing to acquire Buffalo Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram, per Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic. Rutherford adds that Byram is still a candidate to be offer-sheeted by one of many teams, but St. Louis would not be among those teams. They would have to trade for Byram, since they don’t have the draft capital to match an offer sheet.

Acquiring the former fourth-overall pick would be St. Louis’  biggest move since they kicked off the wave of offer-sheets by acquiring Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg last summer. Byram spent the 2024-25 season closely tied to star Sabres defender Rasmus Dahlin. With his help, Byram was able to reach a career-high 38 points in 82 games – while averaging a career-high 22:42 in ice time each game.

The role in Buffalo was the biggest of Byram’s career, and a hardy step up from the 21 minutes a night he averaged with the Colorado Avalanche in the 2022-23 season. He recorded 24 points in 42 games that year, then followed it up with 29 points in 73 games split between Colorado and Buffalo last season.

Byram has managed an impressive 246 NHL games before the age of 25. He’s managed multiple seasons in top-line roles, on the back of high acclaim in his draft year. And yet, the instinctive offensive-defenseman has yet to manage a season with more than 40 points. He was a glowing defense partner for Dahlin — with the two managing a plus-15 goal differential in their minutes together — but struggled significantly away from the star padding — with a minus-22 goal-differential without Dahlin.

Those marks could spell reason for pessimism around the young defender. But of the many teams interested in striking a deal with Buffalo, the Blues may be the ones with the best role available for Byram. They recently lost their top left-defender in Torey Krug, who missed the entirety of last season with an ankle injury. Broberg admirably filled the top role in Krug’s absence, but only managed 29 points in 68 games on the full season. A move to St. Louis would push Byram into a direct competition with Broberg for top-pair minutes. Byram’s offensive instinct would be what wins him ice time in that battle – though losing out would mean a second-line role next to longtime pro Colton Parayko, while Justin Faulk mans the top role.

The need to lean into more offense could be the spark Byram needs, but landing the trade could be a lofty task for the Blues. They currently hold $625,150 in projected cap space – a number that will rise to just over $7MM when Krug goes on long-term injured reserve. Byram earned a $3.85MM cap hit on his last contract, and could be due double that mark after a year on Dahlin’s hip. That could take St. Louis right up to the salary cap mark, unless they can shed money in a move.

Top-end winger Jordan Kyrou has been rumored to be garnering interest from around the league, and would certainly make sense as the buy-up that Buffalo is looking for in a Byram trade. But Kyrou, 27, has reached the 70 point mark in three of the last four seasons – a streak only interrupted by his 67-point campaign last year. Should he be too rich of an asset to move, the Blues could also bank in on their wealth of high-upside prospects on the wing. They already dealt Zachary Bolduc away for a defense upgrade, and could find a similar move revolving around Jake Neighbours or Dalibor Dvorsky, packaged with additional capital.

Just over a week after claiming that the roster was “set”, Blues general manager has explored multiple ways to shake it up even further. Acquiring Byram would be another big-fish addition to a pond that’s been stocked up over the last two summers. The Blues earned a Wild Card bid last season on a regulation-wins tiebreaker. They scored the most goals of any Western Conference team in the Wild Card race, and could get an even bigger boost should Byram continue his growth through another move.

Photo courtesy of Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports.

Flyers Recap Trevor Zegras Trade, Eyeing More Moves This Off-Season

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As has become custom in the wake of big roster trades, Philadelphia Flyers general manager Daniel Brière sat down with the media to discuss the team’s acquisition of Trevor Zegras on Monday morning. Brière most notably shared that the Flyers had already engaged the Ducks in talks around a trade for Zegras, shares ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski. Brière went on to share that previous talks fell through because of Philadelphia’s lack of assets and Anaheim’s lack of desire to rush a move.

That sentiment will ring loud as the Flyers spark their off-season with a big swap. Ryan Poehling – the only skater featured in the return package – filled an important third-line role for the Flyers this season. He scored a career-high 31 points in 68 games and was often the champion of the simple tasks, supporting Philadelphia’s jump up the ice or surge to regain possession. It’s possible that the team couldn’t be pried away from their impactful depth forward until after the season concluded, and they had a full summer to properly assimilate Zegras into his new role.

But what that role will look like still remains a glaring question mark. Brière spoke candidly about the team’s lack of depth down the middle and shared that he hopes Zegras can eventually return to his role at center. But he made sure to note that the final decision will rest with new head coach Rick Tocchet, per Charlie O’Connor of PHLY Sports.

Zegras looked more comfortable on the wing in the time leading up to his first-round selection in the 2019 NHL Draft, but Anaheim invested significant development into shifting the skillful forward over to the middle lane. The center role supported Zegras to the two highest-scoring seasons of his career, when he combined for 46 goals and 126 points in 156 games. But the Ducks had to bear through his dismal 40.6 percent faceoff success rate in that span – a mark that ultimately landed him back on the flanks in the last two seasons.

Brière acknowledged that Zegras’ dip in scoring is why he was available on the open market. The recently turned 24-year-old winger fell to just 32 points in 57 games this season, far off his career-high mark of 65 points set in the 2022-23 campaign. In the end, Brière says that the bet on Zegras returning to strong scoring is a risk the Flyers are willing to take, even if it was difficult to give up Poehling.

Even more exciting, Brière went on to say that the acquisition of Zegras is meant to be just one piece of a big puzzle this summer, shares O’Connor. The team wants to improve through shrewd additions on the trade or free agent market. But they’ll make those decisions with caution, and particularly don’t want to part with any of their three first-round picks in Friday’s 2025 NHL Draft, per Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia. The club could land an impactful player in each of the three position groups in this year’s first round, and was predicated to draft center Jake O’Brien, defender Kashawn Aitcheson, and goaltender Joshua Ravensbergen in PHR’s 2025 Mock Draft. All three players have warranted plenty of attention for their explosive and reliable performances this season.

It’s not clear the exact extent to which Brière wants to build up the Flyers this summer. They ranked dead last in the Eastern Conference last season and have already undergone multiple layers of change this summer. It may be overeager to push the team towards playoff contention next season, though a few more high-upside and young additions like Zegras could go far towards catapulting Philadelphia’s rebuild forward. That momentum, spurred by a trio of top prospects, could push the Flyers into closer contention with future standouts like the San Jose Sharks and Columbus Blue Jackets.

Image courtesy of Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images.

Jackson Smith Commits To Penn State University

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One of the projected top 10 selections for the 2025 NHL Draft has found a new home in the NCAA’s Big Ten Conference. According to Scott Wheeler of The Athletic, defenseman Jackson Smith has committed to Penn State University for the 2025-26 NCAA season.

Smith isn’t a consensus top 10 prospect in the upcoming draft, as he’s ranked as high as sixth by Elite Prospects, and as low as 13th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting. Still, he’s widely recognized as the third or second-best North American defenseman behind Matthew Schaefer and likely behind Radim Mrtka, who’s coming from Czechia, but plays in the Western Hockey League (WHL).

Like Mrtka, Smith is coming from the WHL; however, he played with the Tri-City Americans instead of the Seattle Thunderbirds. Smith recently completed his sophomore campaign with the Americans, scoring 11 goals and 54 points in 68 games with a +2 rating.

Smith projects as an offensive-oriented defenseman at the NHL level. He has demonstrated strong skating and stick-handling skills from the point, but he needs to mature in the defensive zone. The NCAA, and the Big Ten Conference specifically, should help tremendously with the latter.

Although the Nittany Lions finished fifth in the Big Ten Conference, and 13th in the entire NCAA during the 2024-25 season, they made some noise in the National Tournament. After knocking out the University of Maine, and stunning the University of Connecticut in overtime, Penn State reached the Frozen Four for the first time in program history.

Smith will have plenty of expectations and competition on a highly competitive Nittany Lions’ roster. Playing in a top-ranked conference should help grow his offensive and defensive talents.

Islanders, Jets Explored Brock Nelson Trade At Deadline

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The New York Islanders landed a Trade Deadline steal when they sent aging veteran Brock Nelson to the Colorado Avalanche for top prospect Calum Ritchie, defenseman Oliver Kylington, and draft picks in the 2026 first-round and 2028 third-round. But new reports have shared that New York could’ve found a jackpot return even if their offer with Colorado fell through. Marco D’Amico of Responsible Gaming reports that the Winnipeg Jets were also aggressive in their pursuit of acquiring Nelson – and were ready to offer a package very similar to Colorado’s. D’Amico specifies that Winnipeg would have offered up one of Brad Lambert, Brayden Yager, or Colby Barlow in the return, in addition to future draft capital.

New York can rest happy with how things ended up, but acquiring one of Winnipeg’s top names would have been just as lucrative. All three prospects offer their own upside, led by 2023 14th-overall pick Brayden Yager, who scored 82 points in just 54 WHL games this season. He also chipped in 14 points in 16 playoff games – but fell short of the championship run he went on with the Moose Jaw Warriors last season. Yager is likely headed for the pros next season, and could rapidly rise up Winnipeg’s depth chart with a hot start to his career.

Lambert is another top prospect, though expectations around him have cooled slightly after he scored 35 points in 61 AHL games this season – 20 fewer than he managed in 64 games last year. Lambert’s a dynamic and skilled forward, but is still a bit small for pro competition. He offers plenty of upside, but will need to first rediscover the scoring he posted last year.

Barlow is perhaps the most unheralded of the bunch after wrapping up his age-20 season in the OHL. He scored 32 goals and 61 points in 62 games this year. That mark continued his quiet slide down the OHL leaderboard – after he posted 40 goals and 58 points in 50 games last year, and 46 goals and 79 points in 59 games of his draft year in 2022-23. But Barlow intercut that with three points in three AHL games at the end of last season, and could translate as a hard-nosed scorer with pro-level physicality.

But while all three prospects carry reason for upside and reason for question, D’Amico specified that a deal with the Jets fell through because Nelson was unwilling to waive his no-trade clause to head to Canada. He instead waived it to land in Colorado, earning the Islanders the rights to Ritchie just a few months after he made the NHL roster directly out of training camp. Ritchie played in seven games and scored his first NHL goal before returning to the OHL for a dominant season. He posted 70 points in 47 regular season games, and 25 points in 21 playoff games, while serving as the clear-cut top center on an Oshawa Generals lineup that made it all the way to the OHL Championship.

Young Prospects Will Give Blues A New Look In 2025-26

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St. Louis Blues fans went through a true roller-coaster this season. The team was coming off a disappointing 2023-24 campaign – marked by disappointing scoring from much of the roster, a second consecutive playoff absence, and the handoff of coaching duties from Stanley Cup winner Craig Berube to rookie NHL coach Drew Bannister. That turnover made it clear that the Blues were in quick need of a retool and a productive offseason.

But general manager Doug Armstrong didn’t lead a flashy charge over the summer. The Blues were relatively quiet through June and July, save for the risqué first-round draft pick of injured defenseman Adam Jiříček and low-cost acquisitions of Radek Faksa and Mathieu Joseph. It was an uninspiring offseason, until Armstrong shocked the hockey world by signing top Edmonton Oilers youngsters Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg to offer-sheets in August. The deals, shockingly, went through – making the Blues the first club to pull off a successful offer sheet since the Carolina Hurricanes landed Jesperi Kotkaniemi in 2021. The last successful offer sheet before Carolina was in 2007.

Broberg and Holloway made an instant impact on the Blues lineup. Alongside a shock hire of Jim Montgomery, the Blues were able to use their new additions to will out a run to the postseason, against early-season odds. But a first round exit draws attention back to the roster make up. With little offseason cap space to work with – just over $7MM after Torey Krug goes on long-term injured reserve – and only two pending free agents, it seems the Blues are already set to roll out the same group that lost hold this year.

But that’s where their prospect pool begins to sneak in. The Blues have a rare lineup of top young players ready to carve out an everyday role. Winger Jimmy Snuggerud has seemed to already do such, after netting eight points in his first 14 career games this Spring. While he occupies a strong role in the middle-six, centerman Dalibor Dvorsky will enter a winnable competition against Brayden Schenn and Oskar Sundqvist for a role in the team’s center depth. Dvorsky ranked third on the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds with 45 points in 61 games this season, and showed the heft and grit needed to play at an NHL level in his first two career games, even despite recording no scoring.

It seems wise to bet that Dvorsky will find his way into routine NHL minutes next season. He could be supported by upcoming forwards like Aleksanteri Kaskimaki and Otto Stenberg, who both flashed strong play in their first AHL season. Theo Lindstein could be a much-needed injection of youth on defense, after spending all season in a daily lineup role in Sweden’s SHL. He recorded just 14 points in 61 games on the year, but reminded the hockey world of his prowess with four points in seven games at the World Junior Championship. St. Louis even has a strong next-man-up in net, after goaltender Colten Ellis managed a dazzling 22-14-3 record and .922 save percentage in 42 AHL games. It was a continuation of Ellis’ strong play in the minors, after he posted a .924 in 16 games of the 2023-24 season.

All of those options will ensure that St. Louis’ deck stays full, even amid a summer with minimal roster flexibility. Getting a full year out of the productive Snuggerud – who already looks at home as a career-Blue – or adding the gut punch of Dvorsky down the lineup chart could go a long way towards making St. Louis a foe to fear in the Western Conference. The Blues finished fifth in the Central Division in each of the last two seasons, but managed a postseason berth by the skin of their teeth this year. With additions of more young and budding talent, their chances of more confidently locking up a summer bid should only continue to rise through the next few years.

Photo courtesy of Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Minor Transactions: 4/16/25

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The NHL season has come to an end, or soon will, for teams around the league that missed out on this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs. That fact has driven many to begin the process of assigning their waiver-exempt players to more successful teams in the minor leagues. We’ll cover the bulk of those assignments here:

  • In a rare move with playoff implications, the St. Louis Blues have assigned top forward prospect Dalibor Dvorsky to the minor leagues. Dvorsky hasn’t played since April 9th, when he made his second career appearance in the NHL. He has no points and an average of nine minutes in ice time over his first two games. This move will return him to a star role in the minor leagues, where his 20 goals and 44 points in 59 games rank third and fourth on the Springfield Thunderbirds respectively. Springfield have squeaked into the Calder Cup playoffs with 74 points in 70 games this season. Dvorsky will be a major boost to their postseason roster, unless the Blues opt to include him in their inevitable wave of Black Ace recalls.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks have assigned top defense prospects Kevin Korchinski and Artyom Levshunov to the AHL after the end of their season, per a release from the Rockford IceHogs. Both players have manned dominant roles in the IceHogs lineup this season – Korchinski looking to find his comfort after a hard NHL role last season, and Levshunov looking to vindicate his second-overall selection in last year’s draft. They lead the Rockford blue-line in scoring, with Korchinski netting 27 points in 54 games and Levshunov scoring 22 points in 50 games. Levshunov proved the more productive in all three zones at the NHL level. He recorded six assists, eight penalty minutes, and a minus-13 in his first 18 games in the NHL. Korchisnki only scored two points in 16 NHL games this season, though his minus-five was the fourth-best on the Chicago defense. The duo will offer a well-rounded impact to Rockford’s playoff push – Korchinski bringing strong offense and Levshunov showing strong two-way play.
  • The San Jose Sharks have assigned defenseman Luca Cagnoni back to the minor leagues after recalling him to play in their latest game, per Curtis Pashelka of the Bay Area News Group. Cagnoni recorded an assist and two penalties in roughly 18 minutes of Monday’s overtime loss to the Vancouver Canucks. The score was his second assist in six NHL games this season, on top of eight penalty minutes and a minus-four. Cagnoni was named to the AHL All-Rookie Team on Wednesday – high praise after he led all rookie defensemen in scoring with 14 goals and 49 points in 62 games this season. Cagnoni had a breakout season in his first professional campaign, and already seems to be outperforming his fourth-round selection in the 2023 NHL Draft. He will look to keep a good year going as the San Jose Barracuda prepare for a playoff push.
  • Winger Kailer Yamamoto represents the first veteran on this list. He’s headed back to the Tucson Roadrunners alongside goaltender Matt Villalta, after the end of the Utah Hockey Club’s inaugural season, per Cole Bagley of KSL Sports. Yamamoto has been a force in the minor leagues. He leads Tucson in scoring this season with 53 points in 52 games. It’s been a valiant performance that earned the depth forward 12 appearances in the NHL. He scored three points in those games. Villalta has stood tall as Tucson’s starting goaltender as well, with a team-leading .906 save percentage in 41 games this season. He played in just the third NHL game of his career this season and recorded a win, with 28 saves on 31 shots. Yamamoto will return to Tucson’s top-line, while Villalta will likely return to the starter’s role ahead of Jaxson Stauber.
  • The Nashville Predators have assigned Ryan Ufko back to the minor leagues, per Alex Daugherty of The Tennessean. Ufko made his NHL debut on Monday. He didn’t manage any notable stat changes in 15:37 of ice time. Ufko has emerged as a top-four defender for the Milwaukee Admirals this season. His eight goals and 29 points in 71 games lead the Admirals blue-line in scoring. Ufko is still rounding out the physical and two-way aspects of his game, but his emergence as an AHL rookie has proven promising on a Preadtors team well capable of honing defenders into NHL talents.

Flames Recall Hunter Brzustewicz and Samuel Morton

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The Calgary Flames have recalled defense prospect Hunter Brzustewicz and forward prospect Samuel Morton ahead of their final game of the season. This is the first NHL call-up of either player’s career. They could make their NHL debut in Calgary’s flag-waving game, after the Flames were mathematically eliminated from the postseason on Tuesday.

This moves marks a chance for Calgary to gauge their early returns on the January 2024 trade that sent Elias Lindholm to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for NHL winger Andrei Kuzmenko, the rights to Brzustewicz and Joni Jurmo, and two draft picks. Kuzmenko spent 66 games with the Flames before being traded to the Philadelphia Flyers this season, and Calgary hasn’t yet seen any of their acquired prospects on NHL ice. Brzustewicz could be the player to change that, after posting a stout five goals and 31 points in 69 games as an AHL rookie this season. He ranked second in scoring on the Calgary Wranglers’ blue-line behind Jeremie Poirier. The duo also ranked dead-last on the Wranglers’ blue-line in plus-minus, with Poirier sporting a minus-10 and Brzustewicz a minus-nine.

Brzustewicz has long been lauded as a diligent puck-moving defenseman who excels at getting through the neutral zone with tempo. But that knack has left him exposed to quick-moving plays or turnovers in either end. The fast-paced, downhill style of the NHL could be what snaps the 19-year-old defender out of his one-way funk, and give him the platform needed to mix strong scoring and well-rounded defense.

While Brzustewicz looks to bring a good name to drafted prospects, Morton will look to show the capabilities of undrafted free agents. He signed with the Wranglers at the end of the 2023-24 season, after wrapping up his sixth year in college and his fourth with Minnesota State-Mankato. Morton was a strong scorer in his final collegiate season, netting 24 goals and 34 points in 37 games. That high-energy, hard-earned scoring carried over to the pro ranks. Morton scored 11 points in his first 19 pro games last season, split between the regular-season and postseason. He built onto that with a breakout year this season, netting 20 goals and 45 points in 69 games – good for fourth on the Wranglers in scoring. Morton also posted a team-worst minus-14, though his physical presence has helped make up for some lacking defense. He’s another high-energy scorer who will look to round out his game as he receives more NHL opportunities.

Should they make their debuts in Calgary’s final game, Brzustewicz would likely replace one of Jake Bean or Brayden Pachal in the lineup, while Morton would replace Ryan Lomberg, Kevin Rooney, or Yegor Sharangovich. The Flames take on the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday.

Predators’ Ryan Ufko Recalled, Set To Make NHL Debut

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The Nashville Predators have recalled defense prospect Ryan Ufko and are expected to award him his NHL debut on Monday per Nick Kieser of Nashville’s 102.5 The Game. It is the first call-up of Ufko’s pro career.

Nashville drafted Ufko with in the fourth-round of the 2021 NHL Draft, after a standout year with the USHL’s Clark Cup Championship-winning Chicago Steel. Ufko followed a breakout juniors performance and draft selection with three seasons playing for the University of Massachusetts. He carried over his red-hot play right away, netting 31 points in 37 appearances – just two points shy of Scott Morrow’s mark for the lead in scoring among Minutemen defensemen. Alongside Morrow, Ufko served in a top role for UMass as they chased a Hockey East championship.

Ufko’s scoring pace took a slight dip in his sophomore season – when he tallied just 24 points in 32 games – though he did manage to grow from five goals to eight goals. He continued that growth while finding a new gear in his junior year, ending the season with 10 goals and 26 points in 37 games. That scoring coincided with a noticeable full-ice impact and helped Ufko push his squad to a conference semi-final exit. His game was noticeably more energetic, confident, and – above all else for the five-foot-10 defender – physical than in years prior. Nashville opted to strike while the iron was hot, signing Ufko to his entry-level contract and assigning him to the AHL at the end of the UMass season.

That decision proved immediately fruitful. Ufko has found another step in the pro ranks, with six points in nine regular season games and 10 points in 15 playoff games to close out the AHL’s 2023-24 season. He’s continued to grow into form this season, netting eight goals and 29 points in 71 games while earning more-and-more ice time as the year has gone on. Ufko certainly doesn’t have the explosive scoring of some top defense prospects, but the momentum he’s gained in Milwaukee has been admirable. With their season effectively lost, Nashville will give Ufko a chance to continue his momentum into the top flight. He becomes the seventh rookie to make his NHL debut with Nashville this season.

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