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Snapshots: Islanders, Andersson, Hrabal, Jedlicka

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With the Islanders missing the playoffs this season, some wondered if new GM Mathieu Darche might look to make a big shakeup on the trade front.  If he does, their two top forwards won’t be involved.  In his latest column for The Athletic (subscription link), Pierre LeBrun relays that Darche has told forwards Bo Horvat and Mathew Barzal that they will not be moved this summer.  Horvat would have been an intriguing name on the center market while Barzal, who has been more of a winger lately but is a natural middleman himself, also would have drawn a lot of interest but instead, they’ll remain the focal points of a New York group that Darche feels can get back into the playoff mix next season.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • Extension talks between the Flames and defenseman Rasmus Andersson are expected to continue this week with the two sides exchanging numbers for the first time, reports Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli. Andersson is eligible to sign a new deal as of July 1st and it’s one that should carry a significant increase on his current $4.55MM price tag.  While he’s coming off a bit of a down year, he still managed 31 points in 81 games and as a right-shot rearguard who plays in all situations, he’ll be highly sought after should he hit the open market in 2026.
  • The Mammoth tried to sign goaltender Michael Hrabal after this season, his college head coach Greg Carvel stated in a recent Sick Podcast appearance (video link). The 20-year-old was the 38th overall pick back in 2023 and has spent the past two seasons at the University of Massachusetts.  Hrabal posted a 2.37 GAA with a .924 SV% in 36 games for the Minutemen which seemingly was enough for Utah to want to turn him pro.  Instead, Hrabal has decided to return for his junior year and seems like a strong candidate to sign after that.
  • While the Avalanche relinquished the rights to prospect Maros Jedlicka on June 1st, he’ll be remaining with the organization for now. Colorado’s AHL affiliate announced that they’ve signed the forward to a one-year contract for next season.  Jedlicka started this year playing at home in Czechia, collecting two assists in a dozen games for HC Kometa Brno before coming to North America in mid-November.  Jedlicka played in 18 games for the Eagles this season, picking up three goals and two assists and while that wasn’t enough to earn an NHL contract, it was enough for the Avs to keep him around in their system at least.

Snapshots: Larionov, Rotenberg, Vellucci, Bjorklund

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Top Russian club SKA St. Petersburg announced on Monday that they’ve relieved head coach Roman Rotenberg of his duties, and hired Igor Larionov as an immediate replacement. The move concludes Rotenberg’s four-year tenure as SKA’s head coach, which began when he took over for Valeri Bragin partway through the 2021-22 season. It is currently unclear if Rotenberg will continue on in his role as SKA’s Vice Chairman, though it’d be hard to imagine the prolific Russian stepping down after 14 years in the club’s front office.

SKA has seemed to fall short in every single season as of late. They lost in the conference finals each year between 2021 and 2023, then followed it up with earlier exits in the last two years. St. Petersburg also finished seventh in the KHL’s Western Conference this season, despite tremendous performances from star youngsters Ivan Demidov and Alexander Nikishin, midseason acquisition Evgeny Kuznetsov, and top goalie prospect Yegor Zavragin. A seventh-place finish is SKA’s lowest since the 2008-09 season, when they finished eighth.

To curb that poor momentum, SKA will turn to Igor ’The Professor’ Larionov. The legendary Russian player served as SKA’s Director of Hockey Operations in 2008-09, but didn’t kick off his coaching career until he began supporting Russia’s U20 club in 2019-20. He moved to KHL club Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod in 2022-23, and has led the club to quaint finishes and conference quarterfinals exits in each of the last two seasons. Larionov was a true star in the NHL. He won three Stanley Cups across his 14-year career, and served as a gut-punch scorer on the Detroit Red Wings at the turn of the century. His career concluded with 644 points in 921 NHL games, sprinkled across tenures with five different clubs.

Other notes from across the league:

  • The Chicago Blackhawks have rounded out their coaching staff with the hire of Mike Vellucci into an assistant coach role. Vellucci has spent the last five seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and served as an assistant on the gold-medal winning Team USA at this summer’s World Championship. He’s a seasoned-in name in the hockey world, having served as the general manager and head coach of the OHL’s Plymouth Whalers from 2001 to 2014, then pursuing an assistant GM and Director oh Hockey Operations role with the Carolina Hurricanes until 2019. Part of his time with Carolina also saw Vellucci serve two years as head coach of the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers, who he led to a Calder Cup championship in 2019. He also served one year as the GM and head coach of the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Vellucci should be another strong veteran voice to help guide Chicago’s young roster to a new era.
  • The Washington Capitals have signed AHL depth goaltender Garin Bjorklund to a one-year, two-way contract for next season. He will make a league-minimum $775K at the NHL level and $110K at the AHL level. Bjorklund spent the bulk of this season with the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays, where he posted a .927 save percentage and 21-4-1 record. Those marks stand as the sixth-highest save percentage and wins in the league, despite Bjorklund ranking 35th with 29 total appearances. It was a true breakout year for Bjorklund, capped off by a 2-0-0 record and .942 save percentage in the first two AHL games of his career. A new deal should give the 22-year-old a chance to gain footing in the AHL next season, and potentially eye the starter’s role should he be able to keep up the stonewall performances.

Snapshots: Islanders, Nabokov, Andersson, Hagens

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New Islanders GM Mathieu Darche met with the media today (video link) for the first time since being hired.  While he addressed the coaching situation, he was also asked about the upcoming draft.  New York now holds the number one selection following a surprising victory at the draft lottery, leading some to wonder if they might be open to moving it to help get back into the playoff picture for next season.  While he stopped short of ruling out the idea outright, he did his best to pour cold water on the idea, saying that “Someone would have to really knock my socks off to trade that pick.”  The Isles have only picked first overall twice this century, goalie Rick DiPietro (2000) and John Tavares (2009).  Barring an offer Darche can’t refuse, they’ll be adding to that count in a little under a month.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • The Avalanche appear to be likely to sign goalie prospect Ilya Nabokov to an entry-level contract, suggests Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette (Twitter link). The 22-year-old was a second-round pick last year after a breakout year with Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the KHL.  This season, he was nearly as dominant, posting a 2.22 GAA and a .923 SV% in 49 games.  With Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood both signed for next season already, one scenario that could come into play is Nabokov signing with a European Assignment Clause which would allow him to return to Russia for the upcoming season and then make the move to North America for 2026-27.
  • Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson played through a fractured fibula at the end of the season and at the recently completed World Championship, relays Uffe Bodin of Hockey Sverige. The injury isn’t expected to require surgery so there shouldn’t be any issues heading into training camp when he’ll be beginning a contract year.  Andersson played in 81 games with Calgary this past season, notching 11 goals and 20 assists while logging nearly 24 minutes a night of playing time.
  • Speaking with reporters earlier this week including Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald, top prospect James Hagens hasn’t decided if he’ll return to Boston College for his sophomore year. The 18-year-old is likely to go in the top five in the draft next month and will be eligible to play in the minors if the team that picks him wants to start him there if he can’t make the NHL roster.  Alternatively, if he’s not deemed ready for pro hockey, he could return to school or go to OHL London, which holds his rights at the junior level.  Hagens had a solid freshman year as one of the youngest players in college hockey, notching 11 goals and 26 assists in 37 games for the Eagles.

Snapshots: Karlsson, Love, Kolosov

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With a free agent market that isn’t particularly deep for right-shot defensemen, league sources tell Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli that there’s an expectation that Penguins blueliner Erik Karlsson could be in play this summer.  The soon-to-be-35-year-old has put up 109 points in his two seasons with Pittsburgh, well above average although far below the 101 he tallied in his final year with San Jose.  Meanwhile, his defensive game has continued to be inconsistent which could have GM Kyle Dubas looking to move him to shake up his team.  Karlsson has two years left on his contract at $10MM per season (with the Sharks contributing $1.5MM more as part of the trade two summers ago) and the Penguins would undoubtedly need to pay that down to find a suitable trade for his services.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

  • The Kraken appeared to be getting close to hiring Washington assistant coach Mitch Love as their new head coach, according to Daily Faceoff’s Anthony Di Marco. However, those talks apparently stalled at the finish line.  He relays that there may be a condition for the new bench boss to retain assistant Jessica Campbell which could be a deterrent to potential candidates who might want to bring in their own preferred group of assistants.  Love is a speculative finalist for both the Pittsburgh and Boston openings as well so things falling apart late could also be a sign that a better offer came from one of the other teams.
  • After not reporting to Philadelphia’s AHL affiliate after the regular season ended, many wondered if goaltender Aleksei Kolosov could be looking to return to the KHL. Sport-Express’ Artur Khairullin recently reported that the 23-year-old is expected to return to Dynamo Minsk next season, even though he’s under contract with the Flyers through next June.  Kolosov played in a dozen games with Lehigh Valley early in the year and got into 17 more games with Philadelphia the rest of the way but struggled, posting a 3.59 GAA and a .867 SV% in those outings.  With Kolosov on an NHL deal next season, the logistics of Kolosov returning to the KHL will need to be worked out, either by a mutual termination if Philadelphia is willing or his deal could ultimately be tolled at the NHL level.

Snapshots: Canucks, Bruins, Viro

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It could be a long summer for the Vancouver Canucks. After a disappointing 2024-25 campaign in which they fell short of the Stanley Cup playoffs, the team lost their head coach and could have a few key players leave via free agency. It seems they will struggle to find suitable replacements on the free agent market.

Earlier today, Rick Dhaliwal of The Athletic passed along a note from Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman articulating why top free agents don’t seem interested in joining the Canucks. Friedman points out that the internal rift between Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller has steered players away in recent years, and captain Quinn Hughes’ pending unrestricted free agency in a few years is the other reason.

Any top free-agent signing in Vancouver would undoubtedly want Hughes to be part of the team for the long term. He has proven to be one of the best defensemen in the NHL and would significantly enhance the competitiveness of any team. Unfortunately, the Canucks are unable to provide a definitive answer this summer, as they cannot negotiate an extension with Hughes for another year. Additionally, there has been no indication of whether Hughes is interested in extending his contract with Vancouver.

Other snapshots:

  • As one of the few remaining teams still seeking a head coach, the Boston Bruins have reportedly made some headway in their search. According to Anthony Di Marco of Daily Faceoff, the Bruins have completed their first round of interviews and have significantly narrowed down their pool. At the time of writing, and of the remaining coaches on the market, the Bruins have only been connected to Jay Leach, Mitch Love, and Luke Richardson.
  • A report out of Sweden suggests that the Detroit Red Wings could lose one of their defensive prospects in a few days. The report indicates that defenseman Eemil Viro will join the SHL’s Malmö Redhawks for the 2025-26 campaign. Viro, the 70th overall selection of the 2020 NHL Draft, had spent the last three years with the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins, scoring three goals and 19 points in 142 games with a -17 rating.

Snapshots: Brown, Hintz, Koppanen

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Oilers winger Connor Brown left today’s victory over Dallas with an upper-body injury.  He was injured late in the second period on a hit from Alex Petrovic.  Speaking with reporters postgame (video link), head coach Kris Knoblauch indicated that there was no immediate update on Brown’s status.  The 31-year-old has been a quality secondary scorer in the playoffs with five goals and three assists in 14 games despite being questionable for a few games with another injury.  If Brown isn’t available for Tuesday’s matchup, one of Viktor Arvidsson or Jeff Skinner would likely take his place in the lineup.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

  • With Roope Hintz being a late scratch against Edmonton, Stars head coach Peter DeBoer was asked after today’s game about his status. He noted (video link) that the center wasn’t particularly close to being able to play and had he been close, he would have played.  Hintz took the pregame warmup but left only a few minutes in and DeBoer’s comments appear to call into question Hintz’s potential availability on Tuesday.  Hintz has five goals and six assists through 15 playoff games, good for a share of second in team scoring heading into today’s loss.
  • Seth Rorabaugh of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review suggests that pending UFA winger Joona Koppanen would be wise to move on in free agency this summer in a move that could work well for him and the Penguins. The 27-year-old played in 11 games with Pittsburgh this season, scoring once while adding 23 points in 56 AHL contests with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.  While Koppanen can kill penalties, Kyle Dubas tends to prefer a lot of depth which could put him further down the depth chart if he were to re-sign compared to some other teams where a path to a recall could be easier to reach.

Snapshots: Ylönen, Lipinski, Concussion Protocol

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Former Montreal Canadiens winger Jesse Ylönen is reportedly considering signing a deal in the SHL this summer, per Johan Svensson of Swedish news site Expressen (subscription required). Svensson didn’t specify what club the Finnish wing could be headed to. Nonetheless, the potential for a move seems high after Ylönen spent a full season in the AHL for the first time in his four-year career in North America. His minor-league stint was split between the Syracuse Crunch and Milwaukee Admirals, sparked by a late-February trade that swapped Ylönen and fellow minor-leaguer Anthony Angello.

Ylönen was slightly less productive in the Midwest – netting 14 points in 26 games for Milwaukee, including playoffs, after totaling 25 points in 47 games with Syracuse. The full-year total of 39 points in 73 games is far below the scoring pace Ylönen managed through his first two seasons in the AHL in 2021-22 and 2022-23. He spent both seasons with Montreal’s AHL affiliate, the Laval Rocket, and scored 36 points in 52 games and 32 points in 39 games respectively. That latter hot streak earned Ylönen his NHL rookie year during the 2022-23 season – and he managed a modest 16 points in 37 games to show for it. Montreal responded to positive numbers by keeping Ylönen all the lineup for the entirety of the 2023-24 campaign – but the upside bet didn’t pan out. Ylönen managed just eight points in 59 NHL games last season, and landed in the Lightning organization after Montreal declined a qualifying offer at the start of last summer.

Ylönen could be a proper match in Sweden. He grew up in Finland’s youth hockey program and played pro games in each of the country’s top two leagues. That includes totaling a combined 56 points in 127 games across three seasons in the Liiga, before he came over to North America. The SHL has certainly risen above its peers this season, but Ylönen could be well equipped for the challenge after finding, and then losing, his scoring touch in the NHL and AHL.

Other quick notes from around the league:

  • Calgary Flames prospect Jaden Lipinski is headed to the University of Maine next season, per the club’s Instagram. Lipinski will be one of the very few NCAA players with pro hockey experience – after playing one game at the end of the 2023-24 season, and two games this season, in the AHL. He recorded no notable stat changes. Lipinski is still eligible to attend college because all three games were played on an amateur try-out with the Calgary Wranglers, which kept him from earning any compensation for the matchups. NCAA revokes collegiate eligibility once players accept payment, or promise of payment, from a pro sports league. Since he didn’t, Lipinski will enter the league as a junior player who played up one year, akin to Vancouver Canucks prospect Tom Willander, who played two SHL games before joining Boston University last season. The Maine Black Bears will get a hardy addition with this news. Lipinski scored 58 points in 59 WHL games this season, and seemed to improve his ability to play physical and productive hockey. Those are the hallmarks of Maine’s style, and should create a golden stage for the Flames prospect to continue growing.
  • NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly shared that the league is satisfied with how the concussion protocol has performed this season in an interview with Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. Daly shared that the league has embedded due diligence into the process, even when players don’t formally enter the protocol. He shared that, with an additional layer of consideration, he feels the league has been able to properly answer any open questions about the process. Rates of concussions have risen and fallen in the NHL over time, but concerns around long-term effects of head injuries continues to ring louder. News site NPR published an op-ed on the link between lengthy hockey careers and CTE in December, sparking newfound debate over the effectiveness of the NHL’s concussion spotting.

Snapshots: Tocchet, Stolarz, Stars

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Rick Tocchet landed with the Flyers for his next head coaching gig as many expected, but they weren’t the only team with interest in hiring him after he departed the Canucks organization. One club linked to him was the Bruins, who have yet to fill their vacancy.

After his brief stint on the free agent market came to a close, it appears that having some long-term front office stability was a priority for Tocchet as he decided which clubs to have mutual interest with, according to RG’s James Murphy. With Boston general manager Don Sweeney entering the final season of his contract and the team in a precarious, retooling position, that was enough for Tocchet to essentially withdraw himself from consideration for the role.

“He was concerned for two reasons – Sweeney’s status and Sweeney’s track record with his head coaches,” a source told Murphy. Boston has fired Bruce Cassidy and Jim Montgomery in the last three years, both of whom have gone on to either win a Stanley Cup or vastly improve their team’s outlook in their new roles in Vegas and St. Louis.

As Murphy points out, if true, Sweeney may have spoken too soon when discussing his confidence in landing his preferred candidate during his end-of-season media availability. “I’ll call you up and let you know if somebody turns it down, the invitation to interview for one of the most historic jobs in the National Hockey League,” Sweeney said at the time.

More from around the NHL:

  • After a Game 6 shutout to keep his team alive, Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll is getting the start again in tonight’s Game 7. Even if Anthony Stolarz, who was Toronto’s starter to begin the postseason but hasn’t played since leaving Game 1 with apparent concussion symptoms, was available to play, he’d likely go, but that’s not the case. Stolarz did not practice this morning and will not dress, according to Jonas Siegel of The Athletic. Veteran Matt Murray, who entered Game 5 in relief of Woll for his first playoff action in five years, will again dress as Woll’s backup.
  • The Stars’ in-season moves are arguably the biggest reason they’ve advanced to the Western Conference Final in three straight years, Nicholas J. Cotsonika writes for NHL.com. Aside from Mikko Rantanen re-emerging as a superstar after his roller-coaster regular season that saw him arrive in Dallas from Colorado by way of Carolina, their depth has stepped up in considerable fashion with top defenseman Miro Heiskanen and top left-winger Jason Robertson – the latter of whom only has one point in five games – missing the majority of their postseason slate thus far.

Snapshots: Stolarz, Hallander, Jedlicka

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The Toronto Maple Leafs won’t get any goaltending relief after a brutal 6-1 loss in Game 5. Head coach Craig Berube told the media that starter Anthony Stolarz is doubtful to travel to Game 6 on Friday, per Chris Johnston of The Athletic. Stolarz skated at the team’s morning practice, but exited the ice after more than 30 minutes. Stolarz’s injury hasn’t been technically specified, though it seems clear it’s a head injury after he received multiple headshots and was seen throwing up during Game 1 of the second round.

Stolarz has been Toronto’s rock for much of the season. He posted a .926 save percentage and a 21-8-3 record during the regular season – the highest save percentage and fourth-highest win percentage from a Leafs starter since 2000. Toronto’s backup, Joseph Woll, hasn’t matched Stolarz’s shutdown presence when healthy. Woll posted a .909 save percentage and 27-14-1 record in 42 games this season, earning the lion’s share of minutes while Stolarz battled injuries. Woll’s save percentage has dipped to .877 in five postseason appearances. He allowed six goals in his latest outing, which could be enough for Toronto to award veteran backup Matt Murray with just his second playoff start since the 2019-20 season. Murray posted a .934 save percentage in 21 AHL games this season.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Penguins forward prospect Filip Hallander was named the SHL’s Forward of the Year this season, the league announced on Thursday. He scored a career-high 26 goals and 53 points in 51 games this season, good for second in the league in total points behind David Tomasek’s 57 points in 47 games. Hallander signed a two-year contract with Pittsburgh at the tail-end of the SHL season, cementing his return to North America after spending the last two seasons in Sweden. He scored 61 points in 104 AHL games between 2021 and 2023, and added three scoreless NHL appearances. Hallander can now use the momentum from this award-winning season to notch his first NHL points next season.
  • After an injury-plagued season, it doesn’t appear the Avalanche will retain the signing rights to 2023 seventh-round pick Maros Jedlicka, relays Brennan Vogt of Mile High Sports. The 22-year-old Slovak forward spent the latter half of this season on a minor-league deal with AHL Colorado but was limited to five points in 18 games. He missed all of the 2023-24 season due to injury and managed just 12 appearances for HC Kometa Brno in Czechia before terminating his contract there early this season.

Snapshots: Ekholm, Domi, Rodrigues, Berard

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Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm has resumed skating as he works his way back from an undisclosed injury, relays YEG Sports Talk’s Tom Gazzola (Twitter link).  However, it’s still believed that he’s still weeks away from returning.  Already ruled out for this round, it appears that the 34-year-old might be in tough to suit up in the Western Conference Final if Edmonton were to make it there.  Ekholm is a critical cog on their back end, playing a key shutdown role while also being a solid secondary contributor after notching 33 points in 65 games this season.  However, it looks like he’s still not particularly close to returning.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

  • The Department of Player Safety announced that Maple Leafs winger Max Domi has been fined $5K, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for a boarding incident against Florida on Sunday. The incident occurred in the dying seconds of regulation on a hit on Aleksander Barkov.  Domi received a major penalty on the play but won’t receive any further discipline beyond the fine.
  • It appears a decision on Evan Rodrigues’ availability will come closer to game time on Tuesday. Team reporter Rob Darragh mentions that Panthers head coach Paul Maurice indicated that the winger hasn’t been cleared to play in the fifth game against Toronto but hasn’t been ruled out yet either.  Rodrigues left Sunday’s game early in the third period following a hit from Oliver Ekman-Larsson and did not return.  He has three assists in nine games so far this postseason.
  • Rangers forward Brett Berard has withdrawn from Team USA’s roster at the Worlds, relays Mollie Walker of the New York Post. The injury is believed to be a minor one and he’s expected to have a full offseason of preparation and be ready for the start of training camp in the fall.  The 22-year-old made his NHL debut in late November and got into 35 games with the big club, notching six goals and four assists.  Berard also added 23 points in 30 games with AHL Hartford.

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