Bruins Sign Attilio Biasca To Two-Year Contract
The Boston Bruins have reeled in a big fish from the World Championship. Swiss winger Attilio Biasca has signed a two-year deal with the club with an annual cap hit of $980K per NHL.com’s Mark Divver. Biasca was one of Switzerland’s top wingers at the World Championship. He played alongside New Jersey Devils stars Nico Hischier and Timo Meier for much of the tournament.
Much of the Swiss team garnered attention from NHL scouts, including fellow undrafted forward Theo Rochette. Biasca managed to catch eyes despite a quiet tournament marked by only three points in 10 games. The 23 year old nonetheless brought plenty of physical impact, showing off the reliable, two-way game that earned him routine minutes in Switzerland’s National League this season.
Playing through his third season in a full-time, pro role – Biasca put up 15 goals and 27 points with HC Fribough-Gotteron this year. It was his first step away from EV Zug, the club he grew through in youth hockey before moving to the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads from 2020 to 2023. Biasca was a routine scorer for the Mooseheads and spent his final year with the club with the captaincy. He totaled 81 points in 118 games in Halifax, while also posting 11 points in 13 World Junior Championships in the same span.
Three years after his final year of draft eligibility, an NHL team will finally invest in the 6-foot-1, 195-pound winger. Biasca is likely to begin his return to North America with the Providence Bruins, though his sturdy frame and reliable play away from the puck could be enough to earn a promotion into Boston’s bottom-six. That likelihood could hinge on Biasca’s ability to adjust to the speed of North American pros.
Checkers Sign Luca Fantilli, Three Others To AHL Contracts
The Charlotte Checkers have made additions at every position with a series of one-way, AHL contracts. Forward William Bitten, defensemen Mitch Vande Sompel and Luca Fantilli, and goaltender Vinnie Purpura have each agreed to deals with Charlotte for the 2026-27 season.
Vande Sompel is the only re-signee of the bunch. He has spent the last two seasons with the Checkers after joining form the Chicago Wolves partway through the 2023-24 season. His 2024-25 season was cut to only 13 games by a nagging upper-body injury. He underwent a bi-lateral shoulder surgery to address the issue and returned healthy enough to double his appearances in 2025-26 – despite missing much of the middle-season with brief injuries. His season was marked by 11 points and a plus-14 in 36 games. On the heels of his highest-scoring season since the 2022-23 campaign, the oft-injured Vande Sompel will earn another year in his utility role in Charlotte.
Bitten will make a return to North America on this new deal. He spent the last two seasons in Russia’s KHL – split between stints with Moscow Spartak and HC Sochi. Bitten combined for 40 points in 80 games in his international tour, just below the mark of his typical AHL scoring. He’ll seek the higher marks in this return. The AHL veteran scored 103 points in 178 games with the Springfield Thunderbirds between 2021 and 2024. That includes 21 points in 18 games during the 2022 Calder Cup Playoffs and a career-high 45 points in 65 games during the 2022-23 season. Bitten was a physical and effective role player through four years with the Iowa Wild and three years with Springfield. He also played one assist in four games with the St. Louis Blues in the 2022-23 season.
While Bitten moves back to the AHL, Purpura will seek a promotion from the ECHL. That is where he has spent the last four seasons after signing into the pros out of Long Island University in 2023. Purpura worked his way into the Adirondack Thunder’s backup role in the 2023-24 season, earning 15 wins and a .908 save percentage along the awy. He swapped to the Reading Royals for 2024-25 and grew his save percentage to a .922 in 25 games. The Royals then swapped Purpura to the Savannah Ghost Pirates this season. The move brought Purpura the first starting role of his career, though it brought a dip back to a .910 save percentage in 36 games. On the heels of that step forward, he will now target the Greensboro Gargoyles’ starting role, with the Checkers’ backup role in sight.
Fantilli, the older brother of Columbus Blue Jackets star Adam Fantilli, will be the only newcomer of the bunch. He spent the last four seasons at the University of Michigan where he filled a nightly role dating back to his freshman year. Despite that, his role began near the bottom of the lineup and took one step forward each season. By his senior year, Fantilli filled a top-pair role and scored 17 points in 40 games – just four fewer than he managed in 108 games through the first three seasons of his collegiate career. He is nonetheless an effective, defensive-defenseman whose strong stick could earn him a nightly role in Charlotte.
Panthers And Penguins Swap Oliver Okuliar And Emil Pieniniemi
The Penguins and Panthers have made a swap of minor leaguers. Florida has acquired defenseman Emil Pieniniemi from Pittsburgh in exchange for the rights to forward Oliver Okuliar. Both teams have announced the swap.
Pieniniemi’s first season in the pros was a rocky one, to put it lightly. Assigned to the ECHL in October, the 21-year-old refused to report and was suspended indefinitely at the time. After more than two months, he ultimately changed his mind and got into 26 games with Wheeling during the regular season, where he had six goals and five assists. He also chipped in with eight points in 15 playoff contests.
Pieniniemi, a third-round pick in 2023, also got into nine AHL games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, picking up a goal and two assists. He has two seasons left on his entry-level contract, with a cap hit of just under $907K.
As for Okuliar, the winger signed a two-way deal as an undrafted free agent with Florida back in 2024 but played exclusively in the AHL. Despite a strong showing there where he had 19 goals and 22 assists along with 119 penalty minutes in 69 games with Charlotte, he opted to return overseas, signing a two-year deal with SHL Skelleftea.
This season, the 26-year-old played in 46 games in his first taste of that league, picking up 15 goals and 14 assists while adding 13 points in 15 postseason appearances. Okuliar also suited up internationally for Slovakia at both the Olympics and World Championship. He has one year of team control remaining as a restricted free agent.
Given how things transpired between the Penguins and Pieniniemi this season, it’s not overly surprising that the organization has decided to part ways with him. With the swap, Florida picks up a prospect for an asset that likely was going to be relinquished for free next summer. It will be interesting to see if Okuliar’s deal has an NHL out clause to see if Pittsburgh wants to bring him back to North America or if his inclusion is just a different form of future considerations.
Pending UFA Nathan Clurman Signs In Swedish League
Last summer, defenseman Nathan Clurman signed with Montreal, hoping that he might have a better pathway to NHL playing time. However, that didn’t materialize and instead of testing his luck in July, he has opted to take a different path, as SHL Rogle announced that they’ve signed him to a one-year deal for next season.
The 28-year-old was originally a sixth-round pick by Colorado back in 2016, going 161st overall. He spent four years in their minor league system, splitting time between the ECHL and AHL but never getting a chance with the Avs.
In 2024, he joined the Penguins on a one-year deal through Group Six free agency and was at least able to make his NHL debut, getting into one game with Pittsburgh. Injuries limited him to just 31 games in the minors, however, where he had 11 points so it was one-and-done before he signed with the Canadiens last July.
Clurman was able to stay healthier during the regular season compared to recent years as his 60 games played with AHL Laval was a career high. He managed one goal and ten assists in those outings but then was injured at playoff time, not seeing any action in their second-round loss to Toronto.
While Clurman still qualifies as a developmental player by AHL standards (meaning he wouldn’t count against a team’s veteran limit despite his age), it’s not entirely surprising that he has opted to try his hand overseas. He had a $140K guaranteed salary in his deal with Montreal but given that he has settled in as more of a depth player in the AHL, his best shot at taking a step forward might be by going to another league. Then, if things go well, Clurman could have a case to return to North America next season with a higher spot on a depth chart.
Blue Jackets Sign James Malatesta To One-Year Extension
The Columbus Blue Jackets have signed AHL forward James Malatesta to a one-year, two-way extension. The deal will carry an $850K salary in the NHL and $95K salary in the minors per PuckPedia.
Once a highly acclaimed prospect, Malatesta has struggled to adapt his flashy offense to the pro flight. He scored just 10 goals and 18 points in 57 games with the Cleveland Monsters this season. It was Malatesta’s first pro season without a taste of NHL minutes. He played in 13 games with the Blue Jackets over the prior two seasons and scored four points.
Instead of his scoring, it has been Malatesta’s grit that has shined at the pro level. He led the Monsters with 87 penalty minutes this season. In fact, he confidently holds the lead for most PIMs with Cleveland over the last three seasons, racking up 215 in 154 games with the club – more than 50 minutes ahead of Roman Ahcan in second-place.
The 5-foot-9, 190-pound winger could still offer upside with his puck skills. He scored 142 points in 155 games with the QMJHL’s Quebec Remparts from 2020 to 2023. That mark remains third-most among any Rempart since 2020, behind Malatesta’s usual batterymates Theo Rochette and Zachary Bolduc. A new, one-year deal will offer Malatesta another chance to find his spark while operating from a bruising role in Cleveland’s middle-six.
Canucks Sign Jack Thompson To One-Year Contract
The Vancouver Canucks are retaining some of their defensive depth for next season. According to a team announcement, the Vancouver Canucks have signed defenseman Jack Thompson to a one-year, two-way contract for the 2026-27 season.
Thompson, 24, was originally drafted with the 93rd overall pick of the 2020 NHL Draft by the Tampa Bay Lightning. After finishing his three-year tenure in the OHL with the Sudbury Wolves and Soo Greyhounds, Thompson made the jump to the professional ranks in 2022-23 with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch.
The Courtice, ON native made a good first impression with the Lightning organization, scoring five goals and 23 points in 71 games during the 2022-23 AHL campaign. Still, it wouldn’t hold a candle to the production he had the following season, when he scored five goals and 32 points in 46 games to start the 2023-24 season.
Additionally, Thompson made his NHL debut that year, appearing in one game for the Lightning. His tenure with the club would end there, as Tampa Bay dealt him to the San Jose Sharks at the trade deadline in the Anthony Duclair trade. He finished the year with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda, scoring one goal and nine points in 16 games.
In San Jose, Thompson had a much clearer path to NHL ice time than the narrow one he faced in Tampa Bay. It’s the lengthiest run he’s had in the NHL to date, scoring four goals and 10 points in 31 games for the Sharks with a -9 rating, averaging 15:47 of ice time per game.
However, due to the Sharks making several veteran additions to their defensive corps last summer, Thompson lost his spot on the roster. He spent the entire 2025-26 campaign in the AHL, scoring three goals and 12 points in 43 games with the Barracuda, before an in-season trade sent him to Vancouver. Thompson finished off this past season, registering three goals and 13 points in 14 games for the Abbotsford Canucks.
Patrick Brown Signs With DEL’s Adler Mannheim
The Boston Bruins have lost some of their organizational forward depth. According to a team announcement, the DEL’s Adler Mannheim have signed Patrick Brown for the 2026-27 season.
In all fairness, at 34 years old, Brown’s professional career in North America was likely nearing its end, anyway. He was signed as a collegiate free agent by the Carolina Hurricanes ahead of the 2014-15 campaign, and has primarily been an AHL talent for the last 11 years.
Although the Bloomfield Hills, MI native didn’t challenge for any scoring awards throughout his time in the AHL, his North American career is defined by his leadership. Brown was named captain for the Boston College Eagles for the 2013-14 NCAA season, and wore the ‘C’ for three different AHL organizations, including the Providence Bruins, for the past two years.
Despite carving out a consistent role in the AHL, Brown didn’t go without his NHL opportunities, either. Highlighted by a two-year stint with the Philadelphia Flyers in which he played 87 games from 2021 to 2023, Brown played parts of nine seasons with the Hurricanes, Golden Knights, Flyers, Senators, and Bruins. Assuming his NHL career has finished, Brown ends with 10 goals and 26 points in 164 appearances.
Understandably, his performance in the AHL has been much better. Beginning with the Charlotte Checkers in 2014-15, Brown has registered 111 goals and 286 points in 572 career games. Additionally, he captained the Checkers to a Calder Cup championship in 2019.
Carolina Hurricanes Recall Amir Miftakhov
According to the AHL transactions log, the Carolina Hurricanes have recalled netminder Amir Miftakhov from the AHL’s Chicago Wolves. The roster move comes a few hours before the Hurricanes play the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final, and a day before the Wolves begin the Calder Cup Final against the Toronto Marlies.
The news is surprising for several reasons. For one, Carolina already has three goaltenders on the active roster, without any public injury updates.
Carolina had been using Frederik Andersen for most of the playoffs, and for good reason. The 36-year-old netminder was nearly unbeatable through the Eastern Conference Final, managing a 12-1-0 record in 13 games with a .931 SV%. Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case in the Stanley Cup Final, with Andersen owning a 1-1-0 record through three games with a .815 SV%.
In Game 3, Andersen was hit in the head by Ivan Barbashev, causing him to miss Game 4 entirely. Carolina indicated that Andersen was being held out for “maintenance”, but there’s some belief that he’s dealing with a concussion. Today’s recall of Miftakhov strongly suggests that this is the case.
Bussi wasn’t sensational in Game 4 by any stretch, though it was enough to earn the win. Assuming the status quo remains the same, Bussi will be in the starter’s crease tonight, with Pyotr Kochetkov backing him up. If Andersen is dealing with a concussion, Miftakhov would presumably be the emergency backup netminder.
Kings Sign Martin Chromiak To One-Year Extension
According to a team announcement, the Los Angeles Kings have signed Martin Chromiak to a one-year, two-way extension. Los Angeles included that Chromiak will earn an $850K salary at the NHL level.
Chromiak, 23, was a fifth-round pick by the Kings back in the 2020 NHL Draft. He split his draft season between the Slovakian professional leagues and the OHL, scoring five goals and six points in 32 games with the HK Dukla Trencin, and 11 goals and 33 points in 28 games for the Kingston Frontenacs.
During the 2020-21 campaign, he spent the entire year in Slovakia, again with HK Dukla Trencin, improving his output to seven goals and 19 points in 32 contests. The following season, the Kings agreed to a full transition to North America, spending the entire year with the Frontenacs. Chromiak was exceptional, registering 44 goals and 86 points in 60 games.
After that season, Los Angeles felt he was ready to make the jump to the professional ranks, adding him to the AHL Ontario Reign for the 2022-23 campaign. Since then, he’s continued to improve, topping out with a 28-goal, 56-point performance in 71 games for the Reign this past season.
The Kings don’t have a lot of top prospects, but they do have a decent crop of forwards looking to compete for bottom-six roles next season. Several of them are ahead of Chromiak on the depth chart, but he could become the first man up early next season if he continues his positive trajectory.
Kale Clague Signs With KHL’s Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg
The Winnipeg Jets are losing a small piece of their defensive depth for next season. According to multiple reports, defenseman Kale Clague has signed a two-year contract with the KHL’s Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg.
The Regina, Saskatchewan native had a coming home of sorts this season, signing a one-year, two-way contract with the Jets for the 2025-26 season. Unfortunately, that didn’t translate to any playing time in the NHL, as Clague spent the entire campaign with the AHL’s Manitoba Moose.
It was a relatively productive year, scoring nine goals and 27 points in 67 games. Still, it was a far cry from the 10-goal, 39-point performance he enjoyed a year earlier with the Rochester Americans. Additionally, Clague finished with a -16 rating, which stands as his worst mark since the 2018-19 campaign.
Given his age and the length of his new contract, the 2025-26 season could very well have been Clague’s last in North America. Despite being drafted over a decade ago, the 28-year-old blue liner has only managed 94 games at the NHL level, scoring two goals and 21 points with a -22 rating.
He’s unsurprisingly performed much better in the AHL, at least offensively. Debuting in the 2018-19 season with the Ontario Reign, Clague has registered 39 goals and 165 points in 321 career AHL appearances.
In Russia, Clague should largely operate as a two-way threat, with the capacity to average a point every two games. If he performs particularly well, another NHL team may give him another opportunity, but it’s unlikely at this point.