Marlies Re-Sign Pare And Stevens
- The Marlies announced that they’ve re-signed forwards Cedric Pare and Sam Stevens to one-year AHL deals. Pare was a capable secondary scorer last season for the Maple Leafs’ affiliate, notching 12 goals and 14 assists in 59 games. Stevens, meanwhile, was limited to just 21 games with the Marlies in his first professional season, picking up two goals and two assists.
Toronto Maple Leafs Acquire Henry Thrun
In a late-night one-for-one swap, the Toronto Maple Leafs have acquired defenseman Henry Thrun from the San Jose Sharks for forward Ryan Reaves. Both teams have confirmed the trade.
The trade is a good bit of business for both teams. The Sharks were in a position to thin out their defensive core after adding Dmitry Orlov and Nick Leddy last week, and raise their salary cap situation above the upper limit. For Toronto, they were able to move out an overpriced and underused asset for a quality defensive addition.
Thrun has been a relatively consistent blue liner in San Jose for two years. Throughout that time, Thrun has scored five goals and 23 points in 111 games with a -45 rating, averaging 18:39 of ice time per game.
While Thrun’s output in San Jose may appear unsettling, he should find more success in Toronto based on improved teammates and less responsibility. However, there is more reason for concern.
Throughout his career, Thrun has averaged a 42.6% CorsiFor% at even strength and an 89.5% on-ice save percentage at even strength. According to MoneyPuck, for defensive units that played 150 or more minutes for the Sharks last season, Thrun was on both of the worst units in terms of xGoals% with 31.3% and 30.7% respectively.
Still, there’s a legitimate argument that he’s an improvement for the Maple Leafs, considering what they gave up. Even at the time of signing, Reaves’ three-year, $4.05MM contract seemed high, especially considering that Toronto had struggled with salary cap space for a few years.
As expected, Reaves added plenty of physicality to Toronto’s lineup, but not much else. Over his two years with the Maple Leafs, Reaves scored four goals and eight points in 84 games with 268 hits and 77 PIMs while averaging 7:59 of ice time per night. Things got so bad for Reaves in Toronto that the team waived him toward the end of the 2024-25 campaign.
He won’t be expected to show any sort of improvement in San Jose. The Sharks have a glut of prospects making their way to the NHL level, and Reaves will be tasked with protecting the youth movement as one of the last true enforcers in the game.
Photo courtesy of Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images.
Riley Nash Announces Retirement
Longtime depth center Riley Nash has retired from the NHL, he told Tyler Lowey of Castanet Kamloops.
Nash, 36, was an unrestricted free agent after spending 2024-25 under contract with the Rangers. He didn’t play at all last season while rehabbing what he told Lowey were a “variety of knee injuries” he sustained during the previous year while on assignment to AHL Hartford, spending his final professional season on the non-roster list.
“With three wonderful young kids and the way my body has behaved over the past few years, it was time to take a step back as an older guy and let others chase their dream the same way I did,” he told Lowey. “I consider myself very fortunate to have played in front of my kids over the last few years. They helped me regain the passion and love for the sport I had as a kid. Now was the right time to step away.”
The 6’2″, 187-lb pivot was the No. 21 overall selection in the 2007 draft by the Oilers, although he elected not to sign with one of the two clubs from his native Alberta. After winning an ECAC championship with Cornell in his junior campaign in 2009-10, he saw his signing rights flipped to the Hurricanes for a second-round pick.
Nash signed with Carolina a few weeks later. While he ended up having a true journeyman’s career, he did have some stability early on in the Hurricanes organization. He spent six seasons there, seeing NHL ice in the latter five, recording 31 goals, 50 assists, and 81 points in 242 games before reaching free agency in 2016.
Nash went on to see NHL ice for the Bruins, Blue Jackets, Maple Leafs, Jets, Lightning, Coyotes, and Rangers. He spent nearly a decade as a full-time AHL piece, going from 2013-14 to 2020-21 without seeing a minor-league assignment, frequently anchoring third and fourth lines. His best season came on a high-powered Bruins squad in 2017-18, setting career-highs across the board with 15 goals, 26 assists, 41 points, and a +16 rating while averaging 15:25 per game.
He spent the last few seasons of his career as a complementary AHL piece, serving as an alternate captain for the Charlotte Checkers in 2022-23 before spending his final healthy campaign with the Rangers’ affiliate in Hartford in 2023-24.
Nash concludes his pro career with 628 NHL appearances, scoring 63 goals, 113 assists and 176 points with a -11 rating in 13:09 of ice time per contest. He also scored 193 points in 312 AHL games in parts of seven seasons.
All of us at PHR wish Nash the best in retirement.
Maple Leafs Interested In Jack Roslovic
Center Jack Roslovic is one of the top unrestricted free agent names available as we near the second week of the new league year. The Maple Leafs are among the clubs interested in adding him to their roster, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet said on Sunday’s 32 Thoughts podcast.
Toronto’s desire for another top-nine forward is apparent as they take a ‘by committee’ approach to replacing Mitch Marner‘s lost offense. They’ve been linked to other middle-six wingers like Andrew Mangiapane, but didn’t land him.
They’ve done reasonably well so far in building out their depth in the wake of his departure. Prime bounceback candidate Matias Maccelli was a buy-low pickup from the Mammoth, and they recouped strong two-way center Nicolas Roy in the Marner sign-and-trade with the Golden Knights. There’s still another name that’s needed in the mix, though – likely as a complementary winger on their first line with Auston Matthews or on their second with William Nylander and John Tavares.
That’s where Roslovic could come in, although his offensive ceiling isn’t as high as someone like Maccelli’s. The 28-year-old has been a consistent 30- to 40-point threat throughout the 2020s and is coming off a 22-goal showing with the Hurricanes in 2024-25, which tied his career high.
He would be a safe bet for added depth in a top-nine role and has a history of being a plays-where-needed forward. If possible, though, the Leafs would presumably want a piece with more upside.
That could still come via trade, an avenue multiple reports over the past week indicate the Leafs are open to, with nearly $5MM in cap room to leverage. They don’t need to match salaries exactly, but could look to offload a marginally overpaid fringe piece like Calle Jarnkrok or David Kampf in a deal for an impact piece.
The market has been mostly scoured at this stage, but there are a pair of wingers that former Toronto GM Kyle Dubas, now with the Penguins, is looking to cash in on in Rickard Rakell and Bryan Rust. If they can put together an appealing package, far from a guarantee after parting ways with most of their draft capital at the last few trade deadlines, that would be a more preferable top-six boost than inserting Roslovic there.
Eleven Players Elect Salary Arbitration
Eleven players across the NHL have elected for salary arbitration, per the NHLPA.
Those names include:
- F Morgan Barron (Winnipeg Jets)
- G Lukas Dostal (Anaheim Ducks)
- D Drew Helleson (Anaheim Ducks)
- F Kaapo Kakko (Seattle Kraken)
- F Nicholas Robertson (Toronto Maple Leafs)
- D Dylan Samberg (Winnipeg Jets)
- G Arvid Soderblom (Chicago Blackhawks)
- D Jayden Struble (Montreal Canadiens)
- D Conor Timmins (Buffalo Sabres)
- F Maxim Tsyplakov (New York Islanders)
- F Gabriel Vilardi (Winnipeg Jets)
The deadline for second club-elected arbitration is Sunday at 5 p.m., with arbitration hearings scheduled from July 20 to August 4. Two seasons ago, 23 players filed for arbitration, and last summer, that number dropped to 14 — a downward trend that continues this year.
As a reminder, not every player is expected to head to a hearing, as negotiations will continue leading into July 20. However, each player who elects for salary arbitration is now prohibited from negotiating with other teams or signing an offer sheet.
Nikolaj Ehlers Expected To Sign Today
July 2: Ehlers’ stay on the open market isn’t expected to last more than a few more hours. He’s down to a few teams and will make his decision at some point Wednesday, Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic says.
July 1: Entering today, the top free agent on the board was now-former Jets winger Nikolaj Ehlers. He’s due for a big payday after teams looking to land an impact winger in the form of Mitch Marner, who’s off to Vegas in a sign-and-trade, or Brock Boeser, who’s staying in Vancouver on a seven-year deal, failed.
Many pegged Carolina as the favorite to land Ehlers entering today. They’ll certainly have more competition now with other teams looking to circle back and regroup after their day-one activities, but they still have immense spending flexibility with $19MM in cap space and no other moves to make, even after today’s pickup of K’Andre Miller.
As Ehlers likely takes another day – maybe even longer – to mull offers, the Hurricanes did confirm they’ve been in contact with Ehlers’ camp and are “waiting to see where that goes,” general manager Eric Tulsky told reporters Tuesday evening (including the team’s Walt Ruff). ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reported earlier in the day that the Capitals and Lightning were also in contact with Ehlers’ camp, but nothing will be imminent until tomorrow at the soonest.
Ehlers would really need to prefer going to Tampa or Washington to make that a reality. Neither has the cap space to pay him his market value, surely over $8MM per season at this stage on a seven-year deal, and would need to make corresponding moves to make him fit in. Carolina has both a pressing need for him, a system that plays to his analytically inclined game, and the cap space to address his financial needs out of the gate.
Beyond that, his list of realistic destinations might be limited. There will be other teams like the Maple Leafs who may want to create room and add him as an impact top-line piece in the absence of Marner.
Still, Toronto – or any other Canadian team, for that matter – is likely not on Ehlers’ radar, considering his newfound ability to be picky about where he ends up thanks to how the market broke in his favor. He prefers a warmer and less intense market than Winnipeg, Frank Seravalli said on today’s coverage of free agency from B/R Open Ice.
East Notes: Primeau, Lettieri, Leonard
Hurricanes RFA goaltender Cayden Primeau signed a one-year, league minimum deal yesterday, according to a team release.
Primeau saw his signing rights transferred from Montreal to Carolina on Monday in exchange for a 2026 seventh-round pick. The 25-year-old bounced between the NHL and AHL for his first four professional seasons coming out of Northeastern University, but won a full-time roster spot with the Habs in 2023-24, in part due to their unwillingness to expose him to waivers.
He looked good in a three-goalie rotation with Sam Montembeault and Jake Allen that year but struggled mightily as Montembeault’s full-time No. 2 to begin last season. He posted an .836 SV% and sky-high 4.70 GAA with a 2-3-1 record in seven starts and four relief appearances before being waived in December, clearing and heading to AHL Laval.
Primeau got things back on track with a .926 SV% and 2.00 GAA in 25 games with Laval. The Canes hope he can carry that momentum into 2025-26 as he serves as the No. 3 behind the returning NHL tandem of Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov, assuming he clears waivers again in the fall.
Here are a couple of other league minimum signings from yesterday:
- The Maple Leafs brought in veteran depth center Vinni Lettieri, per PuckPedia. While a one-way deal, that’s presumably to guarantee him more compensation. They’re hoping he clears waivers and can be an impact player for AHL Toronto after they lost some important pieces like Nicholas Abruzzese and Alex Steeves yesterday. The 30-year-old spent last year with the Bruins organization, recording five points in 26 NHL games and 48 points in 46 AHL games.
- The Red Wings announced a one-year, one-way league minimum deal for winger John Leonard yesterday. He joins their July 1 haul that also included James van Riemsdyk, Jacob Bernard-Docker, and Ian Mitchell. It’s the 26-year-old’s first NHL contract in a year – he spent last season on an AHL deal with Charlotte, leading the Calder Cup runner-ups in scoring with 36 goals, 25 assists, and 61 points in 72 games.
Maple Leafs Sign Travis Boyd, Benoit-Olivier Groulx, Dakota Mermis
The Maple Leafs announced they’ve signed forward Travis Boyd to a one-year, league minimum contract, forward Benoit-Olivier Groulx to a two-year contract with a cap hit of $812,500, and re-signed defenseman Dakota Mermis to a two-year deal with a cap hit of $812,500. Toronto also confirmed the previously reported signing of Michael Pezzetta.
Boyd led the AHL’s Iowa Wild in scoring last season with a lofty 22 goals and 53 points in 63 games. He was a core piece of the lineup through the extent of the year, providing strong play on both sides of the puck and even serving as an alternate captains during home games. He also appeared in three NHL games on the year, but didn’t manage any scoring. Boys spent the last three seasons with the Arizona Coyotes, and routinely reached promising production. He scored 17 goals and 35 points in 74 games of the 2021-22 season; and 15 goals and 34 points in 82 games of the 2022-23 campaign.
Boyd didn’t offer sharp play away from the puck at an NHL level, but his hot play was halted by injury during the 2023-24 season. Just 16 games and eight points into the season, Boyd sustained a porn pectoral muscle and was forced to end the year early. With a full, strong year in the minors this season – he could be set to slowly walk back to the third-line upside he carried through a trio of years in Arizona.
Groulx is in much of the same position – looking to climb his way back to NHL action after a productive year in the minor leagues. He scored 15 goals and 37 points in 47 games with the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, good for second on the team in scoring behind Alex Belzile‘s 56 points. Groulx played in 45 NHL games last season – after entering the season with just 20 career games up to that point. But he wasn’t able to do much with the extended look, netting just two assists, 22 penalty minutes, and a minus-nine. The performance marked the only changes to Groulx’s NHL stat line since he recorded three points and one penalty in 18 games of the 2021-22 season.
Finishing the trio of signings will be the return of Mermis, who appeared in three games with the Maple Leafs and 32 games with the Marlies. He scored one assist at the NHL level and seven assists in the minor-leagues. Mermis has wandered across the NHL over the last three seasons, moving from the Minnesota Wild, to the Utah Mammoth, and then to Toronto. He served as an extra defender across all three clubs, and will likely return to the rotation of depth NHL minutes and routine AHL ice time on a new deal in Toronto.
PHR’s Gabriel Foley contributed significantly to this article.
Maple Leafs Sign Michael Pezzetta To Two-Year Deal
The Maple Leafs are signing winger Michael Pezzetta to a two-year contract, TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports. It’s a two-year deal with a cap hit of $787,500, according to Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic.
Strictly playing in a fourth-line role with the Montreal Canadiens, Pezzetta finishes his tenure in Quebec with 15 goals and 38 points in 200 games, averaging 8:03 of ice time per game. Without producing much in the way of offense, Pezzetta was typically used in a defensive role when on the Canadiens roster, starting 54.8% of his shifts in the defensive zone, and maintaining a 90.1% on-ice save percentage at even strength.
Unfortunately, after spending much of the last season as a healthy scratch, there was no real point for Pezzetta to remain in Montreal. In Toronto, he’ll play a similar role, and could again be a healthy scratch on most nights. Still, after trading Mitch Marner to the Vegas Golden Knights, the Maple Leafs have found themselves in a unique monetary position to add a host of depth players this offseason.
Over the past several years, due to the high-priced contracts for Auston Matthews, William Nylander, John Tavares, and Marner, Toronto has typically had challenges procuring the necessary depth to last throughout the regular season. Starting with Pezzetta, the team aims to strengthen its bottom six so it does not remain a liability throughout the regular season and playoffs.
PHR’s Brennan McClain contributed significantly to this article.
Maple Leafs Hoping To Keep Holmberg Despite Non-Tender
- Despite non-tendering him yesterday, the Maple Leafs have interest in retaining center Pontus Holmberg, reports TSN’s Darren Dreger (Twitter link). He would have been owed a qualifying offer of around $866K but that would have carried arbitration rights, something Toronto didn’t want to risk. Holmberg had 19 points in 68 games last season and will have interest on the open market while the Maple Leafs will be looking to keep their depth contracts low to increase their flexibility to upgrade other areas of the roster.