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NHL-Affiliated Players Participating In The 2024 World Championship

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May 8, 3:38 p.m.: Blue Jackets 2023 second-round pick Gavin Brindley has been added to Team USA’s roster.

May 8, 12:15 p.m.: A few notable changes were announced today, including Penguins netminder Alex Nedeljkovic heading to Czechia to complement Red Wings Trey Augustine and Alex Lyon in the crease. Sweden’s national governing body also confirmed their full roster for the tournament.

May 6: Nearly every one of the 16 countries participating has confirmed their whole roster ahead of the 2024 IIHF World Championship, which begins Friday in Czechia. The following is a full list of NHL-affiliated players, including those both under contract with teams in 2023-24 or on reserve lists, attending the tournament. For fans of non-playoff bound teams, the Worlds are always a great chance to watch your team’s players skate in competitive hockey in May. Countries without any NHL-affiliated representation are Great Britain, Kazakhstan and Poland.

There’s one notable change to report from already announced/reported rosters: Norris Trophy finalist Roman Josi has been added to Switzerland’s roster, per Elite Prospects. The Predators captain will participate in his first World Championship since 2019.

Anaheim Ducks

G Lukáš Dostál (Czechia)
D Radko Gudas (Czechia)
F Isac Lundeström (Sweden)
F Pavol Regenda (Slovakia)
F Trevor Zegras (USA)
D Olen Zellweger (Canada)

Boston Bruins

F Dans Locmelis (Latvia)

Buffalo Sabres

D Bowen Byram (Canada)
F Dylan Cozens (Canada)
D Rasmus Dahlin (Sweden)
F Victor Olofsson (Sweden)
F John-Jason Peterka (Germany)
D Owen Power (Canada)

Calgary Flames

F Andrew Mangiapane (Canada)
F Martin Pospisil (Slovakia)

Carolina Hurricanes

F Juha Jääskä (Finland)
F Felix Unger Sörum (Sweden)

Chicago Blackhawks

F Connor Bedard (Canada)
D Seth Jones (USA)
F Philipp Kurashev (Switzerland)
G Petr Mrázek (Czechia)
D Vili Saarijärvi (Finland)
D Alex Vlasic (USA)

Columbus Blue Jackets

F Adam Fantilli (Canada) REMOVED FROM ROSTER
F Johnny Gaudreau (USA)
G Elvis Merzļikins (Latvia)
D Damon Severson (Canada)
F Calvin Thurkauf (Switzerland)
D Zach Werenski (USA)

Dallas Stars

F Arttu Hyry (Finland)

Detroit Red Wings

G Trey Augustine (USA)
G Alex Lyon (USA)
D Olli Määttä (Finland)
D Jeff Petry (USA)
F Lucas Raymond (Sweden)

Florida Panthers

F Alexander True (Denmark)

Los Angeles Kings

F Carl Grundström (Sweden)
F Pierre-Luc Dubois (Canada)
F Adrian Kempe (Sweden)

Minnesota Wild

F Matt Boldy (USA)
D Jonas Brodin (Sweden)
F Joel Eriksson Ek (Sweden)
G Filip Gustavsson (Sweden)
G Samuel Hlavaj (Slovakia)
F Marcus Johansson (Sweden)
C Marco Rossi (Austria)
D David Špaček (Czechia)
G Jesper Wallstedt (Sweden)
F Mats Zuccarello (Norway)

Montreal Canadiens

F Cole Caufield (USA)
D Kaiden Guhle (Canada)
F Oliver Kapanen (Finland)
F Vinzenz Rohrer (Austria)
F Juraj Slafkovsky (Slovakia)

Nashville Predators

D Roman Josi (Switzerland)

New Jersey Devils

G Nico Daws (Canada)
F Nico Hischier (Switzerland)
D Luke Hughes (USA)
F Dawson Mercer (Canada)
D Simon Nemec (Slovakia)
F Ondřej Palát (Czechia)
G Akira Schmid (Switzerland)
D Jonas Siegenthaler (Switzerland)

New York Islanders

F Brock Nelson (USA)

Ottawa Senators

F Ridly Greig (Canada)
F Dominik Kubalík (Czechia)
F Shane Pinto (USA)
D Jake Sanderson (USA)
F Brady Tkachuk (USA)

Philadelphia Flyers

G Samuel Ersson (Sweden)
F Joel Farabee (USA)
G Matej Tomek (Slovakia)

Pittsburgh Penguins

F Raivis Ansons (Latvia)
F Michael Bunting (Canada)
D Erik Karlsson (Sweden)
G Alex Nedeljkovic (USA)
D Marcus Pettersson (Sweden)
F Jesse Puljujärvi (Finland)
F Valtteri Puustinen (Finland)

San Jose Sharks

F Mikael Granlund (Finland)
F Luke Kunin (USA)
D Jan Rutta (Czechia)
F Will Smith (USA)
F Nico Sturm (Germany)
F Fabian Zetterlund (Sweden)

Seattle Kraken

F Pierre-Édouard Bellemare (France)
F André Burakovsky (Sweden)
G Philipp Grubauer (Germany)
F Jared McCann (Canada)
F Oskar Fisker Mølgaard (Denmark)
D Jamie Oleksiak (Canada)
F Brandon Tanev (Canada)
F Tomas Tatar (Slovakia)

St. Louis Blues

G Jordan Binnington (Canada)
F Kevin Hayes (USA)
G Joel Hofer (Canada)
D Matthew Kessel (USA)
D Colton Parayko (Canada)

Tampa Bay Lightning

F Michael Eyssimont (USA)
F Brandon Hagel (Canada)
D Victor Hedman (Sweden)
F Nick Paul (Canada)

Toronto Maple Leafs

F Fabrice Herzog (Switzerland)
F Pontus Holmberg (Sweden)
F David Kämpf (Czechia)

NHL Utah

F Dylan Guenther (Canada)
F Milos Kelemen (Slovakia)
D Michael Kesselring (USA)
D Patrik Koch (Slovakia)
F Jack McBain (Canada)
D Maksymilian Szuber (Germany)
G Karel Vejmelka (Czechia)

Vegas Golden Knights

F Martins Dzierkals (Latvia)

Washington Capitals

D Martin Fehérváry (Slovakia)
G Antoine Keller (France)
F Ryan Leonard (USA)

Winnipeg Jets

F Nino Niederreiter (Switzerland)

West Notes: Henrique, Marchment, Hakanpää

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Oilers forward Adam Henrique has been downgraded to doubtful for tomorrow’s Game 1 of their second-round series against the Canucks, The Athletic’s Daniel Nugent-Bowman reports.

Henrique, 34, has been dealing with a lower-body injury for at least the past few days, missing a practice last Friday. It wasn’t believed he would miss any time until today, and he’s now been officially listed as day-to-day by head coach Kris Knoblauch.

The trade deadline pickup from the Ducks was solid in Edmonton’s dispatching of the Kings in the first round, posting a goal and an assist in five games while averaging 15:52 per game. His lone goal, coming in the first period of Game 1, set an NHL record for the longest period of time between postseason goals for a player. His last came with the Devils in the 2012 Stanley Cup Final – also against Los Angeles.

The domino effect of Henrique’s absence will force depth winger Mattias Janmark into a first-line role with Connor McDavid and Zach Hyman, per Nugent-Bowman. He’s averaged only 10:27 per game against the Kings but still managed two assists. Edmonton’s other trade pickup from Anaheim, Sam Carrick, has been a healthy scratch since Game 4 in L.A. and isn’t expected to re-enter the lineup.

Elsewhere in the West:

  • As the Stars set to get their second-round series kicked off tonight against the Avalanche, they’ll again be without the services of winger Mason Marchment. He remains sidelined with the undisclosed injury he sustained back in Game 2 against the Golden Knights in the first round, head coach Pete DeBoer told Lia Assimakopoulos of the Dallas Morning News. DeBoer did say Marchment isn’t too far away from returning, meaning he could return before the series stretches into elimination territory. After recording a career-high 22 goals and 53 points in the regular season, Marchment scored once against Vegas before exiting the lineup.
  • Further away from returning is defenseman Jani Hakanpää, DeBoer added. Both he and Marchment are skating but he’s behind the winger in his recovery. The 32-year-old has missed a significant chunk of time with a lower-body injury, a blow to their defensive depth, although trade pickup Chris Tanev has replaced his top-four shutdown role and excelled while doing it. Hakanpää, a pending unrestricted free agent, last played against the Kings on March 16.

Penguins Notes: Prospects, Injuries, Rebuild

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Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas had an eventful locker-room cleanout, sharing plenty of news, updates, and plans with the media following the end of the season. Most exciting of the bunch was Dubas’ support of the team’s young prospects, sharing that he expects forwards Brayden Yager, Vasili Ponomarev, and Sam Poulin; defenseman Owen Pickering; and goaltender Joel Blomqvist to each compete for NHL roles next season, shares Rob Rossi of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Penguins fans will hope that their GM is right as he alludes to young talents holding onto lineup roles. Pittsburgh carried the oldest roster in the NHL this season, with an average age of 29.78 per EliteProspects.

They’ll certainly get plenty of talent in the names Dubas mentioned. Both Yager and Pickering spent the season in the WHL. Yager had a career year, scoring 35 goals and 95 points and adding five points in five World Juniors games. Pickering also recorded career-high scoring – though not with as much of a jump as Yager – netting 46 points in 59 games to top his 45-point season last year. Meanwhile, Blomqvist served as the starter for the Wilkes-Barre/Scanton Penguins, recording a dazzling .921 save percentage in 44 games.

Other notes from Pittsburgh’s cleanout:

  • Dubas also shared that legacy defenseman Kris Letang will be getting a second opinion on if he needs surgery this summer to address an undisclosed injury, per Seth Rorabaugh of the Tribune-Review. Rorabaugh also mentioned that Matthew Nieto suffered another injury following his surgery in January, and will seek a second opinion on if surgery or rehab is the next step. Emil Bemstrom is also hurt, finishing the season with a concussion. Nothing was made about these injuries being alarming, though Penguins fans will want to keep a close eye on Letang’s recovery. The future Hall-of-Famer appeared in all 82 games this season, but reportedly played through injury down the stretch.
  • Dubas hinted at an interesting approach in his press conference, saying that the Penguins wanted to approach their rebuild similar to how the Los Angeles Kings have approached theirs, per The Athletic’s Josh Yohe (Twitter link). The Kings have managed a fairly quick rebuild – if this year’s postseason berth signifies success – while maintaining key veterans like Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty. The Penguins will approach things similarly, looking to build around their long-time core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Letang. The Kings were aggressive in the open market, acquiring Phillip Danault, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Kevin Fiala, and Vladislav Gavrikov. One has to think Michael Bunting and Erik Karlsson represent two of these impactful additions, though Pittsburgh will need to continue addding if they want to claw back into the postseason.

Canadiens Notes: Reassignments, Offseason Plans, Slafkovsky, Caufield, Gorton

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The Canadiens trimmed their roster significantly today, assigning four players to AHL Laval. Defensemen Justin Barron, Logan Mailloux and Jayden Struble, as well as forward Joshua Roy, are headed down to the minors to finish the 2023-24 season. Laval, with two games remaining, is attempting to clinch a playoff berth in the North Division.

Roy’s reassignment confirms he’s been cleared to return from an upper-body injury that kept him out of the lineup since mid-March. The 2021 fifth-round pick has quickly risen up the professional ranks, posting four goals and nine points in 23 games during his first couple of NHL stints this year. The 20-year-old was among Laval’s most effective per-game producers before being called up to the Habs, impressing in his rookie season with 13 goals and 32 points in 40 games.

Mailloux, selected in the late first round in 2021, made his NHL debut last night against the Red Wings, posting an assist and a +1 rating in 21:14 of ice time. He leads Laval defenders and is third on the team in scoring with 47 points (14 goals, 33 assists) in 70 games, his first in the professional ranks.

Barron and Struble both spent significant time on the NHL roster this season but weren’t exactly full-timers, seeing extended stints in the minors as well. The 22-year-old Barron’s season was a more even split, skating in a career-high 48 NHL games but failing to eclipse last year’s career-high of 15 points. He knocked on the door of playing top-four minutes, averaging 18:38 per game, and posted strong relative possession numbers. While he hasn’t impressed much in Laval with 11 points and a -5 rating in 30 games, his major-league showing was strong enough to keep him in consideration for an opening-night job on next season’s roster.

Like Mailloux and Roy, Struble is in his first full professional season. The 22-year-old has been on the NHL roster exclusively since November, aside from a brief reassignment to Laval on March 8 to make him eligible for minor-league playoff action. He became a bottom-pairing mainstay on the Habs’ blue line, notching 10 points in 56 games with a -3 rating while averaging 16:07 per game. He was similarly strong in limited action with Laval early this season, posting six points and a +4 rating with 29 PIMs in 12 games before heading up to Montreal.

Other updates coming from the Habs’ front office in today’s end-of-season availability:

  • GM Kent Hughes made apparent to reporters today that adding on offense will be his off-season priority. The Fourth Period reports he may leverage the organization’s surplus of young defensemen to get it done rather than gunning for a top-six scoring forward on the free agent market. Eight defensemen on the NHL roster for last night’s game are already under contract for next season, not including Barron and Arber Xhekaj, who are pending RFAs. Hughes also confirmed that he doesn’t intend on taking advantage of the two buyout windows this summer to open up some cap space or part ways with a veteran (via Sportsnet’s Eric Engels). The club will have no buyouts on the books next season, with Karl Alzner’s expiring this summer. A likely candidate would have been center Christian Dvorak, who was limited to nine points in 30 games this season with a pectoral injury and has one season left at a $4.45MM cap hit with an eight-team no-trade list.
  • Sophomore winger Juraj Slafkovsky scored his 20th goal of the season last night, awarding him a $250K performance bonus. That will be applied to next season’s books as a dead cap charge, PuckPedia reports, as Montreal had already exhausted the performance bonus pool awarded to them by Carey Price’s LTIR placement. Slafkovsky also informed reporters today he intends to represent Slovakia at the 2024 World Championship next month.
  • Joining Slafkovsky at the Worlds will be star goal-scorer Cole Caufield, who’s accepted an invitation from Team USA GM Bill Guerin to play at the tournament. Caufield largely fell short of expectations this season, limited to 28 goals in 82 games after sniping 26 in only 46 contests last year. The 2019 first-round pick still finished second on the team in scoring behind Nick Suzuki, however, and has a long runway to rebound with seven years remaining on his contract with a $7.85MM cap hit.
  • Habs executive VP of hockey operations Jeff Gorton was expected to draw some interest for any current or future GM vacancies that may arise this offseason, but he told reporters today, including TVA’s Renaud Lavoie, that he plans on sticking in Montreal. He was hired in November 2021 after the team relieved former GM Marc Bergevin of his duties, serving as interim GM for a few months before appointing Hughes in the role. Before joining the Habs, Gorton was the GM of the Rangers for six seasons and oversaw most of their late-2010s retool.

Maple Leafs Notes: Domi, McMann, Järnkrok, Edmundson

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Maple Leafs forward Max Domi is expected to miss the final two games of the regular season, head coach Sheldon Keefe said (via David Alter of The Hockey News). It’s an undisclosed injury that’s been nagging him for a while, Keefe said, although he’s aggravated it slightly in recent outings. It’s not expected to plague him heading into the postseason, so they’ll hold him out now with a playoff spot under wraps and make sure he’s ready to go. The 29-year-old has been a late-season revelation, excelling since being bumped up to the first line alongside Auston Matthews and Tyler Bertuzzi. He’s scored just nine goals but has 47 points in 80 games on the year. 37 of his 38 assists have come at even strength, placing him inside the top 15 league-wide.

Elsewhere in Leafland:

  • While there’s still a glimmer of hope for Domi to suit up in the regular-season finale Wednesday against the Lightning, the same can’t be said for Bobby McMann. His lower-body injury will keep him out of both their remaining contests, Keefe said. He also didn’t confirm McMann’s availability for Game 1 of their likely opening-round series against the Panthers, saying, “We’ll see where he’s at as that approaches” (via Mark Masters of TSN). McMann left Saturday’s overtime loss to the Red Wings after skating only four minutes. The undrafted free agent has been Toronto’s most unlikely producer, working his way up from the ECHL over the past few seasons and eventually solidifying his spot as an everyday NHLer this season. He has 15 goals and 24 points in 56 games this season, ranking ninth among Leafs forwards in points per game.
  • Winger Calle Järnkrok’s availability for Game 1 is also in doubt as he continues to recover from a hand injury. Keefe said that his status is “still to be determined, but I think he’s more in a day-to-day situation. Unfortunately, we’re running out of schedule here” (via Masters). Järnkrok was a partial participant in today’s practice and did travel with the team on their regular season-ending road trip to Florida. He hasn’t played since March 14, sustaining his second hand injury of the season after missing over a month with a knuckle fracture in February.
  • Defenseman Joel Edmundson will be re-evaluated by the team’s medical staff ahead of tomorrow’s game against the Panthers, Keefe said (via Masters). The defenseman practiced today as he continues to try and shake an undisclosed injury, which Keefe called a “positive sign” for the trade deadline pickup. He’s been injured for most of his Toronto tenure, missing 10 of 18 games. When in the lineup, he’s averaged 17:56 per game with a +3 rating.

Submit Your Questions For The #PHRMailbag

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The trade deadline has come and gone with some surprising moves made as teams looked to load up for the stretch run.  That stretch run now features several teams trying to jockey for a Wild Card spot or try to position themselves better in their respective divisions.

With that in mind, it’s a good time to open up the mailbag once again.  Our last mailbag was done in three segments.  The first focused solely on the Central Division and included discussions on who could afford Juuse Saros’ next contract and the asking price to get him plus thoughts on Winnipeg’s back end and if the time was right for Arizona to move Clayton Keller.  The second featured some thoughts on two proposed trade targets for New Jersey, the Rangers’ center situation, and plenty of trade deadline discussion.  Meanwhile, the third covered the idea of a coaching change in Washington, thoughts on a proposed rule change, and more trade deadline speculation.

You can submit a question by using #PHRMailbag on Twitter/X or by leaving a comment down below.  The mailbag will run on the weekend.

Canucks Reassign Vasily Podkolzin

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The Canucks returned winger Vasily Podkolzin to AHL Abbotsford on Wednesday, per a team announcement.

The 22-year-old’s second stint on the NHL roster this season was brief, lasting just three days. He made back-to-back appearances against the Ducks and Kings, recording one shot while averaging 10:58 of ice time.

Podkolzin, the 10th overall pick in 2019, could very well be in his final days in the Canucks organization. The Canucks remain embroiled in trade talks for high-profile deadline targets like Jake Guentzel, and without a full-time NHL role, he’s a natural candidate to increase the value of their offers.

Sending him to Abbotsford frees up a necessary roster spot for Vancouver, who was at the 23-player maximum on their active roster. They may use the extra roster space to execute trades today or sign UFA winger Phil Kessel for the remainder of the season. The three-time Stanley Cup champion remains in Vancouver and has been working out with the organization since last month.

Podkolzin is in the final season of his entry-level contract, which carries a $925K cap hit. He’ll be an RFA this summer but is not yet eligible for salary arbitration.

He’s continuously slipped down the depth chart since skating in 79 NHL games for Vancouver two seasons ago, but he’s been decent in the minors this year with 15 goals and 28 points in 44 games. He boasted solid possession numbers in his two NHL showings this week, recording a 55.3 CF% at even strength with a +0.6 expected rating.

Kraken Scratch Alexander Wennberg For Trade-Related Reasons

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Kraken center Alexander Wennberg will be held out of tonight’s game against the Flames for trade-related reasons, head coach Dave Hakstol said (via Kate Shefte of The Seattle Times). Wennberg, 29, had been generating interest as far back as last month and was linked to the Rangers a few weeks back. The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta added Monday that the Bruins have demonstrated interest, while Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic reports the Avalanche have also called about the veteran center.

Carrying a cap hit of $4.5MM on an expiring deal, Wennberg may potentially veto a deal to any of these teams if they appear on his 10-team no-trade list. He has nine goals, 16 assists and 25 points in 60 games this season, his third with the Kraken after he signed a three-year, $13.5MM contract with them in free agency before their inaugural season in 2021.

It’s a bit of a down year for him offensively, but not by much. His 0.42 points per game aren’t far south of his 0.48 career average, although his possession metrics have taken a tumble. He’s posted a 46.7 CF% at even strength, a career-low by a country mile for the normally defensively responsible center.

That hamstrings his value at his cap hit, but with all three retained salary slots open, Kraken GM Ron Francis will likely retain half his salary to make him a $2.25MM player for the acquiring team. Adding in a third party could decrease his cap hit by another 50% to $1.125MM.

The Rangers’ courtship of Wennberg has been discussed at length, while the Bruins have been in the conversation for added depth down the middle since the retirements of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejčí last summer. The Avalanche, on the other hand, are likely in on Wennberg as a backup plan if they can’t land the Ducks’ Adam Henrique, who Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reported has been linked to Colorado. If Wennberg is being held out days before the deadline, though, he may not be available by the time Colorado leans their fate on their offer for Henrique.

Metropolitan Notes: Markström, Hurricanes, Capitals, Gruden

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The Devils added some bottom-six grit today by acquiring enforcer Kurtis MacDermid from the Avalanche. Still, GM Tom Fitzgerald is far from done ahead of the March 8 trade deadline. He remains aggressive in his pursuit for a goaltender and, with Predators starter Juuse Saros all but off the table thanks to Nashville’s recent hot streak, he’s refocused his attention on the Flames and Jacob Markström.

Calgary seems less inclined to move on from their star starter than earlier in the calendar year, but that hasn’t stopped New Jersey from continuing to engage. Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reports Friday that New Jersey has made it known they’re no longer asking the Flames to retain any salary on Markström in a potential deal, making a trade much more palatable for Calgary GM Craig Conroy, who’s made it clear in recent days he doesn’t want to be stuck with any more long-term salary commitments than necessary.

That still doesn’t likely solve all of New Jersey’s roadblocks in acquiring Markström, who carries a $6MM cap hit through 2026. The Flames’ unwillingness to take salary back means it’s highly unrealistic that they’d take Devils netminder Vítek Vaněček, who carries a $3.4MM cap hit through next season, back in a trade. That would pose significant cap issues for the Devils in 2024-25, as they have under $20MM in projected space with only 13 out of 23 roster spots filled. To make it work, they’d likely need to part with more assets to dump the last season of the struggling Vaněček’s deal in a separate trade.

Other notes out of the Metropolitan Division one week out from the deadline:

  • The Hurricanes continue to pursue forward help as their top priority over the next seven days, The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta reports. That includes smaller-scale additions outside of their reported interest in Canucks star center Elias Pettersson, which could very well flame out as extension talks between him and Vancouver continue. A quick scan of their forward group makes it clear they’d prefer to add a center above all else. 24-year-old Jack Drury is currently holding down the second line between Michael Bunting and Martin Nečas and, while he’s taken a step forward this season, still has only 26 points in 60 games – not at all the production you’d envision from the second-line center on a Stanley Cup-contending team.
  • All three of the Capitals’ questionable players for tonight’s practically do-or-die game against the Flyers will be in the lineup, head coach Spencer Carbery said (via Tom Gulitti of NHL.com). Tom Wilson (personal leave), Nick Jensen (lower body), and Sonny Milano (illness) had all missed recent practices or games. Wilson returns to a top-line role alongside Alex Ovechkin while youngster Hendrix Lapierre gets a chance down the middle between them, while Milano, who’s struggled to stay healthy with 11 points in 27 games this year, occupies a second-line role alongside Max Pacioretty and Dylan Strome. Jensen returns to his normal role, anchoring the team’s second pairing behind John Carlson.
  • The Penguins have recalled left-winger Jonathan Gruden for the second time in the past two days, per a team announcement. The 23-year-old was brought up under emergency conditions before yesterday’s loss to the Kraken but did not play, and was briefly returned to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton over the night. He’s skated in five NHL games this year, going without a point while averaging 7:20 per game.

Canucks Reassign Arshdeep Bains

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The Canucks have assigned left-winger Arshdeep Bains to AHL Abbotsford, GM Patrik Allvin said Friday. Bains had been on the roster since a Feb. 17 recall, the first of his NHL career.

The 23-year-old didn’t record a point in his first five NHL outings, posting a -3 rating and three shots on goal while averaging 12:57 per game. He spent a little over a third of his 5-on-5 ice time with Conor Garland and Elias Lindholm, although the trio struggled to maintain possession with a 38.1% expected goals share, per MoneyPuck. Individually, Bains posted poor possession numbers with a 45.5 CF% at even strength and an expected rating of -1.6, although starting 61% of his shifts in the defensive zone likely didn’t help matters.

That showing shouldn’t detract much from a promising season for the Surrey, British Columbia native, though. An undrafted free agent signing by the Canucks from the WHL’s Red Deer Rebels in 2022, Bains has broken out for nine goals and 30 assists for 39 points in 42 games in his sophomore season with Abbotsford, leading the team in scoring. His +13 rating is also a team-high.

Bains doesn’t yet require waivers for a minor-league assignment, and it’ll be a while before he does. He must play two more professional seasons or 75 NHL games, whichever comes first, before his waiver exemption lapses.

He now returns to Abbotsford, where he’ll earn his minor-league salary of $70K compared to his NHL salary of $775K. He has one more season remaining on his entry-level contract, with a cap hit of $816.7K. He’ll be an RFA upon expiry in 2025.

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