The Hockey News' Adam Proteau is currently in the process of ranking each NHL team from worst to best ahead of the 2026-27 season.
The Columbus Blue Jackets have officially been ranked as one of the NHL's worst teams right now, as Proteau gave them the No. 27 spot.
"Columbus needed a big 2026 off-season, and they didn’t get it. That’s why the Blue Jackets are in 27th place in TheHockeyNews.com’s off-season ranking," Proteau wrote.
"Unfortunately for the Blue Jackets, there’s not enough progress developing this Columbus team into a legitimate Cup front-runner," Proteau added. "The Jackets are fortunate that the Metropolitan Division they play in is one of the NHL’s weaker divisions. But that doesn’t change the fact that their roster isn’t imposing. And this summer did little to convince us that’s likely to change anytime soon.
The Blue Jackets being ranked as one of the NHL's bottom teams ahead of the 2026-27 season comes after they had some notable departures this off-season.
The Blue Jackets did not re-sign former captain Boone Jenner, as he signed a four-year, $23 million contract with the Washington Capitals in free agency. This was after he posted 13 goals, 38 points, and 147 hits in 67 games last season for Columbus.
Jenner is not the only former key forward that the Blue Jackets lost this off-season, either. Mason Marchment signed a five-year, $33.75 million contract with the San Jose Sharks after being a great mid-season addition for Columbus. In 39 games with Columbus following being acquired from the Seattle Kraken, he posted 15 goals and 32 points.
The Blue Jackets did find a replacement for Marchment in Valeri Nichushkin, though, acquiring him from the Colorado Avalanche. In 72 games last season for Colorado, he posted 17 goals and 49 points. However, he also had 21 goals and 34 points in just 43 games for the Avalanche in 2024-25 and 53 points in 54 games for Colorado in 2023-24, so he could end up being a big pickup if he bounces back.
The Blue Jackets will now be hoping that Nichushkin can end up being a strong addition to their top six. Another way the Blue Jackets could exceed expectations is if their young players like Adam Fantilli, Denton Mateychuk, and bounce-back candidate Kent Johnson hit new levels for them. The Blue Jackets will also be hoping that Jet Greaves can continue to shine as their No. 1 goalie.
Nevertheless, it is going to be interesting to see how the Blue Jackets perform next season. If their young guns break out and and their core players have strong years, they could very well surprise many and be far better than this No. 27 ranking.
Why The Maple Leafs Promoted Patrick O’Sullivan To Director of NHL Development
Patrick O’Sullivan has been named Director of NHL Development by the Toronto Maple Leafs, the club announced Sunday.
The promotion elevates O’Sullivan from his previous position as a development coach, a role he has held with the organization since the 2023-24 season. Over those three years he has worked within a specialized player-development group that includes Nik Antropov, Kyle Clifford, Denver Manderson and Jake Muzzin, focusing on technical skill refinement, video analysis and individualized biomechanics across the roster.
A Toronto native, O’Sullivan arrived with a strong playing foundation. Selected 56th overall by the Minnesota Wild in 2003, he set franchise records with the Mississauga IceDogs, won OHL and CHL Rookie of the Year honours in 2002, scored the game-winning goal for Team USA at the 2004 World Juniors and captured AHL Rookie of the Year after a 47-goal, 93-point season with the Houston Aeros. He played 334 NHL games with the Kings, Oilers, Hurricanes, Wild and Coyotes before transitioning into broadcasting and later player development.
His most visible impact has come through sustained work with veteran centre John Tavares. The relationship stretches back more than two decades. As a teenager, Tavares cited O’Sullivan’s puck-handling, vision and shot mechanics as an early influence while watching him with the IceDogs. The two later connected through youth lacrosse and off-season training sessions. In Toronto, that foundation evolved into regular post-practice technical work. While now former Maple Leafs skating consultant Paul Matheson addresses linear power and edge control, O’Sullivan has focused on game-state micro-skills: lower-body leverage and blade-angle control for puck protection below the goal line, net-front redirection and tight-angle releases, and board retrievals under physical pressure.
Patrick O’Sullivan has been named Director of NHL Development.
O’Sullivan’s influence has extended across the roster. Max Domi has called him “probably the best development coach in the league,” crediting the combination of on-ice micro-reps and video breakdowns that improved his transitional playmaking and neutral-zone decision-making. Auston Matthews has used optional gameday skill sessions with O’Sullivan to maintain shooting mechanics and manage load during congested stretches.
John Tavares and Max Domi doing some skills work with Patrick O’Sullivan ahead the Leafs morning skate. pic.twitter.com/d17gW3Abgw
His approach is shaped by personal experience. In his 2015 memoir Breaking Away, O’Sullivan detailed the physical and psychological abuse he endured from his father, experiences that left lasting effects and a mistrust of rigid, hierarchical environments. That background has informed a coaching style built on clear communication, technical empathy and individualized support rather than punitive feedback.
The promotion arrives amid broader organizational change under general manager John Chayka. Elevating O’Sullivan recognizes three seasons of consistent, high-value work that has helped extend the productive windows of core veterans while supporting the technical growth of the rest of the roster. As Director of NHL Development, he will now take on expanded responsibility for how those programs scale across the NHL-level group.
For a franchise focused on both performance and sustainability, the move formalizes the contributions O’Sullivan has already made.
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The Buffalo Sabres have been considered to have one of the deepest prospect pools in the NHL, which is in part due to them selecting high in recent drafts because of their not qualifying for the playoffs. The Sabres have displayed an eye for talent, and the organization’s developmental model has begun to yield results, with 2023 first rounder Zach Benson making an impact in the playoffs, and 2024 top pick Konsta Helenius appearing as one of the AHL’s top prospects the last two seasons.
Leading up to the opening of training camp in mid-September, we will look at the club's top 40 prospects. These players are all 25 years old or younger, whose rights are currently held by the Sabres or are on AHL or NHL deals, and have played less than 82 NHL games.
With Buffalo’s organization littered with their own drafted prospects, the chances of an undrafted free agent making it to the NHL are slim, but the Sabres gave forward Riley Fiddler-Schultz a chance he has been making the most of his opportunity.
The 24-year-old has NHL bloodlines (his uncle Vern Fiddler played 877 games with Nashville, Phoenix, Dallas, and New Jersey), and Riley grew into a leadership role in junior with the WHL’s Calgary Hitman, becoming team captain in 2022 and leading the club with 75 points (31 goals, 44 assists).
The Sabres signed Fiddler-Schultz to a two-year AHL deal in 2023, and in his first professional season, he finished second in goals (23) for the ECHL’s Jacksonville Iceman and played six games for the Rochester Americans. In 2024-25, he played exclusively for the Amerks and posted 26 points (13 goals, 13 assists) in 51 games, which earned him a two-year, entry-level NHL contract. With more responsibility came more production, as last season, the Alberta native finished tied for second behind Isak Rosen with 21 goals in 62 games.
With Konsta Helenius and Noah Ostlund likely graduating to the Sabres, and Anton Wahlberg dealt to Anaheim in the Olen Zellweger deal, players like Fiddler-Schultz will be relied on even more, and that could lead to an NHL opportunity if he continues to show progress.
The Buffalo Sabres have not been able to pull off a move to upgrade their club this summer after winning the Atlantic Division, making the playoffs for the first time since 2011, and advancing to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season. GM Jarmo Kekalainen was able to get a good future return for defenseman Bowen Byram, but did not replace the offense and leadership of Alex Tuch after he was dealt to Washington.
Rumors of a deal for Winnipeg goalie Connor Hellebuyck percolated around the NHL Draft in late June, but Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff did not pull the trigger and now a trade involving the Hart Trophy and multi-Vezina Trophy winner seems to be in a state of limbo.
The 33–year-old is entering the fourth year of an eight-year, $68 million deal ($8.5 million AAV), and has a full no-movement clause until next July. After that, he has a 10-team trade list. Chatter around the draft indicated that the Sabres were willing to send a package that included goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, forward Jack Quinn and the fourth overall pick, later used to select Daxon Rudolph.
Who had the best and worst offseason in the Atlantic Division?
That deal seems less likely now, since Luukkonen has gained some control over his destination with a limited no-trade list, and because other potential suitors may have entered the fray. The New Jersey Devils, who like the Sabres are projecting a three-headed monster of Jake Allen, David Rittich, and Nico Daws is goal, potentially have the pieces that Cheveldayoff might be looking for in a Hellebuyck deal.
Another possibility is the Stanley Cup winning Carolina Hurricanes, who lost veteran Frederik Andersen in free agency, and has a duo of Brandon Bussi and Pyotr Kochetkov between the pipes. The Hurricanes have enough cap space to take on Hellebuyck’s $8.5 million salary, but could be a bit light on the return they could offer the Jets.
Kekalainen could be playing a game of chicken with the Jets, hoping they will lower their pricetag as training camp nears, but that is a dangerous game that could result in the veteran goalie ending up with another Eastern Conference foe.
As the National Hockey League enters the second month of free agency, a number of former Buffalo Sabres still remain unsigned. At this point of the offseason, players who have not latched on with an NHL club might consider playing in Europe, or taking a short-term deal or professional tryout to earn a one-year deal.
A player who has been well-travelled since entering the league in 2014 is center Curtis Lazar. A 2013 first round pick of the Ottawa Senators, the Salmon Arm, BC native Kitchener, ON native played 2 ½ seasons in Canada’s capital before being dealt to Calgary in March 2017. After playing a full season with the Flames, Lazar spent nearly all of the 2018-19 season in the AHL, and he signed with the Sabres in the summer of 2019.
Who had the best and worst offseasons in the Atlantic Division?
The versatile depth forward split time between AHL Rochester and Buffalo in the COVID-shortened campaign and 33 games in 2020-21 before being dealt allong with Taylor Hall to Boston. Since then, Lazar has made stops in Vancouver, New Jersey, and Edmonton, where he played 45 games last regular season and five games in the playoffs.
Outlook: At this point in the summer, and at this point in Lazar’s career, it is more likely that the 31-year-old, if he wants to play for an eighth NHL club, will have to open to accepting a professional tryout.
It's been more than 25 years since the Ottawa Senators traded Alexei Yashin to the New York Islanders in one of the most important deals in franchise history.
Yashin was the Senators' first real star in the 1990s, and still the only player in team history to be nominated for the Hart Trophy.
Steve Warne and Gregg Kennedy discuss how the Senators now keep a much tighter lid on trade or signing information than they did just a few years ago..
But after many seasons of discontent, which included contract complaints, holdouts and claims of broken promises, the Senators, just as they did this summer, traded away their team captain.
And incredibly, it's a trade that still has a chance to pay dividends today.
On June 23, 2001, the Senators sent Yashin to the Islanders in exchange for Zdeno Chara, Bill Muckalt and the second overall pick in the 2001 NHL Draft.
Later that day, the Sens used that #2 pick to select Jason Spezza.
Chara emerged as one of the NHL's top defencemen during his four seasons in Ottawa, while Spezza developed into one of the most talented offensive players in franchise history.
Chara eventually left Ottawa as a free agent in 2006, and Muckalt spent just one season here, so two of the three branches of the Yashin trade tree came to an end a long time ago.
But the Spezza branch is still alive.
Spezza played 11 excellent seasons with the Senators, scoring 251 goals and 687 points in 686 regular-season games. He still ranks second all-time in Sens scoring.
In the summer of 2014, in the proud tradition of Sens captains wanting out, Spezza requested a trade, and Bryan Murray sent him to the Dallas Stars.
The Senators received Alex Chiasson, Nick Paul, Alex Guptill and a 2015 second-round draft pick.
That created four new branches on the Yashin trade tree.
Three eventually came to an end.
Chiasson spent two seasons in Ottawa before being traded to Calgary for Patrick Sieloff, who's best known for clobbering a recovering Clarke MacArthur in a preseason scrimmage. The Senators later flipped Sieloff to Anaheim for Brian Gibbons, who had 14 points in 20 games for the Sens before leaving as a free agent that summer.
Guptill was included in a multi-player trade with Buffalo in 2016 that brought Phil Varone, Jason Akeson and Jerome Gauthier-Leduc to Ottawa. It was strictly a minor league deal that never yielded another asset to the Senators.
The 2015 second-round pick acquired from Dallas also took an interesting path.
Ottawa packaged the 42nd overall selection with another pick to move up to No. 36 in the 2015 draft, where the Senators selected Gabriel Gagne.
Gagne was eventually traded to Toronto in 2019 for former first-rounder Morgan Klimchuk. Klimchuk played one full season in Belleville, then retired at 25.
That left Nick Paul, the fourth and final branch. Teammates would often say, "Nicky Paul does it all," and that apparently included nursing trade trees back to life.
The tree could have easily died at any point when the Sens exposed Paul to waivers on three separate occasions, but he went unclaimed and eventually became a very solid middle-six forward for the Senators.
In a trade that certainly hasn't aged well for Ottawa, the Sens deal Paul to the Tampa Bay Lightning at the 2022 trade deadline for Mathieu Joseph and Tampa Bay's fourth-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft.
Joseph spent two more full seasons with the Senators before Ottawa traded him to St. Louis in 2024 along with a third-round sweetener just to free up some cap room for some big changes in Ottawa that summer.
That ended the Joseph portion of the tree.
But there was still that 2024 fourth-round pick, a single remaining bud.
The Sens used it to select winger Blake Montgomery, and he's the sole reason why a trade tree that sprouted in 2001 is still alive today.
After falling in the NCAA Final with Wisconsin, the 21-year-old joined the pro ranks late last season, signing his entry-level contract and getting into three games with Belleville.
So, in a nutshell (I've decided the tree has nuts), the history of the Spezza branch looks like this:
Alexei Yashin → 2001 No. 2 pick → Jason Spezza → Nick Paul → 2024 fourth-round pick → Blake Montgomery.
It's one of the more intriguing trade trees in Senators history, and whether it ends with Montgomery or not remains to be seen.
After 11 seasons and stops with five different NHL teams, the former Vegas Golden Knights forward appears ready to close out his professional career where his hockey journey began.
Nosek has signed with HC Dynamo Pardubice of the Czech Extraliga in recent weeks, returning to his hometown club after more than a decade in North America.
For Golden Knights fans, Nosek will always have a special place in the franchise's early history. He joined Vegas for its inaugural 2017-18 season and spent four seasons with the Golden Knights, appearing in 240 games and recording 31 goals, 34 assists and 65 points.
Nosek as a member of the Golden Knights during a 2021 game against the Montreal Canadiens. Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie - Imagn Images
Nosek was never expected to be a star in Vegas, but he became a reliable part of the team's bottom six and played 240 games for a franchise that was still establishing its identity. He brought size, versatility and a willingness to do the less glamorous work that comes with playing a depth role in the NHL.
After his time with the Golden Knights, Nosek continued his career with several other NHL clubs before eventually landing with the Florida Panthers.
His final two NHL seasons couldn't have ended much better.
Nosek helped Florida win the Stanley Cup during the 2024-25 season, appearing in 16 playoff games and recording three assists while throwing 44 hits during the Panthers' championship run.
He returned for one more NHL season in 2025-26, appearing in 21 games and finishing with two goals and two assists for four points.
Now, at 33 years old, Nosek is heading home.
A native of Pardubice, Nosek joined HC Dynamo Pardubice's system in 2007, beginning with the club's U18 team. Nearly two decades later, he's returning to the organization as a Stanley Cup champion and a veteran of 11 NHL seasons.
It's a fitting ending for a player who never forgot where he came from.
When Nosek got his day with the Stanley Cup following Florida's championship, he made sure to bring it back to Pardubice. He visited his childhood rink and former high school before eventually sharing the trophy with thousands of people in the city's historic Pernštýnské Square.
Now, after playing for five NHL teams, winning a Stanley Cup and building a career that lasted 11 seasons in the world's best hockey league, Nosek appears ready for one final chapter in his hometown.
And if this is indeed the end of the road, he couldn't have picked a better place to finish it.
Montreal Canadiens former first-overall pick at the 2022 draft, Juraj Slafkovsky, had a breakout season last year. For the first time in his young career, he broke the 70-point and 30-goal barriers. The big Slovak winger scored 30 goals and logged 43 assists for a total of 73 points, but beyond the points, he also finally realized what his identity needed to be on the ice.
Thanks to a couple of spells playing on a line with Oliver Kapanen and Ivan Demidov, Slafkovsky realized that he could be a play driver in his own right and that he wasn’t just a complementary piece for linemates Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki. The forward really started using his pace when chasing the puck and laying big hits in puck retrieval, and he learned to make his way to the busy areas in front of the net to create havoc. With his 6-foot-3 and 225-pound frame, he can be a real nuisance for the goaltender, obstructing his view and putting pressure on the defence, but also being ready to jump on any rebound. Once he sets up camp somewhere, he’s hard to displace, and that’s how he was able to beef up his points total.
The playoffs were a good reminder for the 22-year-old that intensity ramps up when teams are competing for the Stanley Cup, and he needs to be aware of that on the ice. He was rocked by a Max Crozier hit in Game 4 of the Canadiens’ first-round duel with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
He needs to remember to keep his head up and not watch himself play, so to speak. His fight with Brandon Hagel also hurt the team; he was challenged by the Bolts winger and answered the bell, but ended up on the receiving end of a haymaker that sent him down to the ice. That’s not the kind of impact he should be having.
The main point of improvement has to be consistency, however. Once again, last season, he had a slow start and took some time to reach his cruising speed. Expect a big start from the power forward as he’ll be keen to bounce back from underwhelming playoffs.
As things stand and unless the Canadiens do manage to find some outside help before the start of the season, he should still be riding shotgun with Suzuki and Caufield. Look for him to play a bigger role now that he has seen what kind of impact he can have if he plays the game the right way and focuses on his strengths rather than trying to emulate what the likes of Caufield or Demidov can do. Look for new career highs in both points and goals for the big winger.
Chinakhov had only played junior hockey in Russia before being drafted, and he would make his KHL debut during the 2020-21 season for Avangard Omsk. In his first pro season in the KHL, he scored 10 goals and had 17 points. Chinakhov played so well that he was elevated to Avangard Omsk's top line. After one season in the KHL, Chinakhov was signed to a three-year NHL ELC in May of 2021.
Savard won a Stanley Cup after he was traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2021. He then left to sign a contract with his hometown Montreal Canadiens in 2021, where he would play for four seasons. Although his Habs teams weren't very good, Savard remained a steady presence on the Montreal Blue Line. He had 76 points over four seasons while blocking 646 shots over those four years.
Heinze was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, grew up in North Andover, Massachusetts, and played college hockey at Boston College. It was only right, then, that he played the first nine years of his career for the Boston Bruins after being chosen 60th overall in the 1988 NHL Draft.
Daňo made his NHL debut in 2014 and played 35 games. He scored 8 goals, totaled 21 points, and was a plus-12 in his first NHL season. It seemed that Marko Daňo had arrived and was ready to be a good player for Columbus. That was until the following season.
Ole-Kristian Tollefsen - Drafted out of Norway in 2002, Tollefsen was known for his heavy fists. In his first season with Columbus, he played in 70 games and had a whopping 123 PIMs. In his second season, he played in 51 games and had 111 PIMs. After those two years, he would only play another 19 games for Columbus and another 18 for the Philadelphia Flyers. He returned to Europe in 2010 and retired in 2017. Tollefsen is now the head coach for the Norway U20 team.
Columbus originally drafted McQuaid in the 2nd round of the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. McQuaid would never play for the CBJ, though. While he was still in the OHL, he was traded to Boston by Columbus for Boston's 5th-round pick in the 2007 NHL Draft on May 16, 2007. The pick the Jackets sent to Boston turned out to be Jamie Benn.
Adam Foote had a private plane waiting for him, and everything he needed was waiting for him in Calgary. Some say Foote got nasty because everyone knew his plans, and when the CBJ didn’t want to accommodate those plans, that’s when it went off the rails.
During this past season with the Calgary Flames, Lomberg threw 129 hits. This marked the fifth season in a row that the 5-foot-9 forward recorded over 100 hits. He also threw 90 hits with the Florida Panthers in 2020-21, but that was only in 34 games played.
Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Denton Mateychuk was undoubtedly a nice bright spot during the 2025-26 season. In 75 games this past campaign with the Blue Jackets, the 2022 first-round pick set new career highs with 13 goals, 18 assists, and 31 points.
Two Columbus Blue Jackets forwards are continuing to be viewed as trade candidates as the summer rolls on. In his most recent trade board for Bleacher Report, Lyle Richardson included Blue Jackets forward Kirill Marchenko and Kent Johnson.
The Columbus Blue Jackets will be aligning themselves with the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL, per a CBJ announcement. The agreement is for two years through the 2027-28 season.
Former Cleveland Monsters right winger Hudson Fasching has signed with Skellefteå AIK in the SHL. The deal is for one year. The team plays in Skellefteå, Sweden.
Following being traded to the Blue Jackets, Garland recorded five goals and seven points in 21 games. This was after he had seven goals and 26 points in 50 games with the Canucks before the trade.
Former Cleveland Monsters defenseman Ole Julian Bjørgvik-Holm has signed a deal to play with the Graz99ers of ICEHL in Austria. The team plays in Graz, Austria.
Now that it is August, NHL free agents should soon be signing professional tryout (PTO) agreements with teams. When looking at the Columbus Blue Jackets' roster, it is fair to wonder if they will sign anyone to a PTO before the start of training camp.
Bayreuther has launched the Bayreuther Hockey Club. The club will be designed to develop complete hockey players and to "help every player become the best version of themselves."
The Detroit Red Wings may have found a market for Dylan Larkin, but they apparently haven’t found a team willing to pay their asking price.
According to longtime Detroit Free Press journalist Helene St. James, the Vegas Golden Knights are among four teams that have expressed interest in acquiring the Red Wings captain, with the Florida Panthers, Minnesota Wild and Dallas Stars also involved in discussions. That sounds like the makings of a bidding war.
There’s just one problem: Detroit reportedly wants a first-line center in return for Larkin.
And suddenly, it’s easy to understand why nobody has taken the bait.
Vegas Doesn't Need Dylan Larkin
From a Golden Knights perspective, this should be a relatively easy decision for general manager Kelly McCrimmon.
Vegas already has a legitimate first-line center in Jack Eichel, and he isn’t going anywhere.
Eichel recently signed an eight-year, $108 million contract extension that runs through the 2033-34 season. He is one of the best centers in hockey, a proven playoff performer and the kind of player Vegas built its championship window around.
Why would the Golden Knights trade him for Larkin?
They wouldn't.
And if Detroit's expectation is that Vegas should surrender Eichel while somehow adding more to the package, the Red Wings can probably stop calling McCrimmon.
Larkin is a good NHL player. He's been a good NHL player for a long time. He's also the captain of one of the league's most historic franchises and has earned plenty of respect throughout his career.
But none of that makes him more valuable than Eichel.
That distinction matters.
The Other Three Teams Have Problems, Too
Vegas isn't the only team that should have serious reservations about Detroit's asking price.
The Panthers aren't trading Aleksander Barkov. Florida's captain is a two-time Stanley Cup champion, one of the best defensive centers of his generation and arguably the most important player in the franchise's history.
The Stars aren't trading Wyatt Johnston, either.
Johnston is already an elite young scorer and represents exactly the type of player Detroit should want if it is serious about moving Larkin for a first-line center. But Dallas would have to be completely out of its mind to give up a player with Johnston's trajectory for a 29-year-old center who isn't in the same class.
Then there's Minnesota.
The Wild may be the most logical fit of the four because they failed to add a center during free agency and desperately need to find more help down the middle. There is a path where Larkin makes sense alongside Kirill Kaprizov.
But even Minnesota has a significant reason to hesitate.
Danila Yurov, the Wild's 2022 first-round pick, just completed his first full professional season in North America, recording 12 goals and 15 assists for 27 points in 73 games while averaging just over 13 minutes per night.
Those numbers don't jump off the page.
But if Yurov gets the opportunity to play alongside Kaprizov, his role could change dramatically. Twenty-plus minutes per night would not be surprising, and the Wild clearly believe there is considerably more offense waiting to emerge from their young forward.
If Minnesota believes Yurov can eventually become the type of first-line player Detroit is asking for, why would it surrender that potential for Larkin?
That's the problem the Red Wings have created for themselves.
Maybe Detroit Doesn't Actually Want To Trade Larkin
There is another possibility here, and it's one Vegas should keep in mind.
Maybe the Red Wings don't actually want to trade Larkin.
Perhaps Detroit is simply keeping the door open while waiting for the perfect opportunity to materialize. The franchise is still working through its front-office transition, with Shawn Horcoff serving as interim general manager following Steve Yzerman's departure.
That makes the timing even more curious.
Detroit can tell teams it is listening. It can hear offers. It can explore Larkin's market.
But if the asking price is essentially, "Give us your first-line center," the Red Wings aren't exactly making it easy for anyone to say yes.
And maybe that's intentional.
Larkin Isn't The Player Vegas Needs
There is nothing wrong with Dylan Larkin.
But Vegas doesn't need another good center.
The Golden Knights need players who have already demonstrated that they can elevate their game when the stakes are highest.
That's an important distinction.
Larkin's value shouldn't be based on what he accomplished for Team USA at the Olympics or on the fact that he has spent years wearing the captain's "C" for an Original Six franchise.
The Golden Knights aren't building Team USA.
They're trying to win another Stanley Cup.
And the most recent evidence we have of Larkin leading Detroit came at the end of the 2025-26 season, when the Red Wings suffered a historically ugly collapse after putting themselves in position to make the playoffs.
Larkin wasn't solely responsible for that. Obviously.
But that's the point.
Vegas shouldn't be looking at the name on the back of the jersey or the résumé accumulated over the years. It should be asking whether Larkin represents a significant enough upgrade to justify surrendering a premium asset.
The answer appears to be no.
Vegas Should Let Detroit Keep Its Captain
If Detroit eventually lowers its asking price, perhaps the conversation changes.
But the Golden Knights should have absolutely no interest in helping the Red Wings solve their problem by overpaying for a player they don't need.
Eichel is better.
Vegas knows what it has in Eichel, and more importantly, it knows what Eichel can do when the games matter most.
Larkin is a good player. He's a talented player. He's a respected player.
He's just not an elite first-line center in the same class as the players Detroit would apparently need to acquire him.
And that's why this could ultimately be a blessing for Vegas.
Let Florida keep Barkov. Let Dallas keep Johnston. Let Minnesota decide what it wants to do with Yurov. And let Detroit figure out what it actually wants to do with Larkin.
The Golden Knights don't need to take the bait.
They need to keep their best assets, trust their own roster and find players who can help them win in the postseason.
If Detroit wants to trade its captain, that's its problem.
The Montreal Canadiens should be open to bringing in a player on a professional tryout (PTO) agreement for training camp this year.
One remaining free agent who could make sense for the Canadiens to take a look at on a PTO is defenseman John Klingberg.
Klingberg is the top right-shot free agent defenseman left, and the Canadiens could use more depth on the right side of their blueline. If he impressed during his PTO and earned an affordable deal for the season, he could be a useful extra defenseman for the Habs to have when injuries occur during the season.
Klingberg showed this past season with the San Jose Sharks that he is still capable of producing decent offense from the point. In 56 games with the Pacific Division club, he posted 10 goals, 17 assists, and 27 points. With numbers like these, he could be worth taking a chance on with a PTO.
If Klingberg earned a contract for the season, he would also give the Canadiens another veteran who could help mentor their younger players. He has 700 games of NHL experience, after all, which is not a bad thing.
It will be interesting to see if the Canadiens sign Klingberg to a PTO ahead of training camp. If he is still not signed to a contract by then, it could be worth some consideration.
CENTENNIAL, CO - JUNE 11 : Colorado Avalanche GM Joe Sakic, left, and team's president and governor Josh Kroenke are in the press conference at Family Sports Center in Centennial, Colorado on Thursday, June 11, 2026. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post) | Denver Post via Getty Images
Colorado Avalanche News
The Avalanche have plenty of talent and experience on the blue line, but each defenseman has one area where he can take another step in 2026-27. [Sports Illustrated]
As part of the NHL’s 32 in 32 series, Colorado’s fantasy projections for the 2026-27 season. [NHL]
Former Nashville Predators defenseman Nick Blankenburg is still on the free agent market, despite being a solid depth option for essentially any team.
Blankenburg, who spent parts of two seasons with the Predators, was traded to the Colorado Avalanche ahead of the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline.
In 109 games with the Predators, Blankenburg's level of play took a major step forward from what he had previously done with the Columbus Blue Jackets. He established himself as an effective player on both ends of the ice and recorded 37 points (10 goals and 27 assists) during his time in Nashville.
While Blankenburg likely isn't an ideal everyday player for a playoff team, he could fill that role for a rebuilding team or could serve as a strong depth option for a contender due to his ability to play on both sides of the blue line.
As a 5-foot-9 undrafted player, Blankenburg has had to overcome the odds considerably to even be in the conversation for an NHL job. At this stage though, it seems that he should get at least a professional tryout with a team heading into training camp.
If there's one thing that Pittsburgh Penguins' head coach Dan Muse proved last season, it's that being a rookie head coach comes with its ups and downs, but the best coaches are able to endure.
The Penguins ended the season as the NHL's second-highest scoring team. He and the rest of the staff brought together a squad of players in many different career stages with different tiers of experience and skill, and he was able to get the most out of all of them.
So, after a relvatively successful first season, what should folks expect out of Muse in his second season as Penguins' head coach? Here are four storylines to watch in 2026-27.
1. Is special teams success repeatable?
For most of the 2025-26 season, the Penguins were the only NHL team with both a top-five power play and top-five penalty kill. Both units fell off ever-so-slightly near the end, with the power play finishing seventh at 24.1 percent and the penalty kill finishing sixth at 81.4 percent.
Of course, Muse can't be credited entirely for the success of both units, as Todd Nelson was the power play coach and Mike Stothers and Nick Bonino largely ran the PK. But, as has been stated several times over by Muse himself and by the entire coaching staff, they all work as a collective unit, even if certain areas of focus are delegated. Muse and the others were able to get the buy-in from both units, and even players who don't traditionally kill penalties such as Rickard Rakell and Erik Karlsson were used pretty heavily in those roles.
The Penguins were a high-scoring five-on-five team last season, and they were a below-average defensive team five-on-five. Their special teams were a primary reason they were able to make the playoffs.
If their special teams remain first-class in the league, they should remain playoff contenders - and that will require the same level of buy-in from the players as last season, even as Muse and company have plenty of new faces on both the forward front and the blue line.
But, if last season is any indication, opportunities will be given by Muse and the staff if earned.
A young 18-year-old at the time, center Ben Kindel made the team out of training camp last season, as did 19-year-old defenseman Harrison Brunicke. With each passing game - and, even more impressive, every passing game at the center position - Kindel kept proving why he should stick around. He got better and better throughout his nine-game trial run, and even if it was a very unexpected development, Kindel earned his stay past the 10 games and was the team's regular third-line center the rest of the season - a sign of Muse's trust in Kindel.
Brunicke, meanwhile, didn't show as much and displayed signs of struggle early on in the season, so Muse and the staff adapted, and the blueliner was eventually sent back to junior hockey in the second half after the NHL stint, an AHL conditioning stint, and the World Junior Championship. They made the most of Brunicke's time at the NHL level last season, though, and he came back to the AHL playoffs looking like a much better player.
If guys like Koivunen, Brunicke, Rutger McGroarty, Avery Hayes, Tristan Broz, or Owen Pickering earn their opportunities, there's no reason to think Muse won't reward them - even if there is a logjam of both forwards and defensemen who are, presumably, slated to be on the NHL roster at the start of the season.
The Penguins need to push younger. Muse knows this, and his strength in development is one of the primary reasons he was hired. So, how much runway will he give these players to prove themselves at the NHL level when their opportunity knocks, and how will these guys continue to respond to him?
3. Can Muse elevate this team with respect to the Metro?
Perhaps the biggest challenge for Muse and his team next season will be matching up to the rest of the Metropolitan Division.
Of course, no team is the same year-to-year, and that includes the Penguins. On paper, the Penguins appear to have marginally more talent on their roster, so theoretically, they should improve. Their young goaltending tandem might be the biggest x-factor there.
But other teams also improved, and some more drastically. The Carolina Hurricanes are the class of the division and the defending champs for a reason. The Washington Capitals went out and had themselves an offseason, adding Alex Tuch, Jordan Kyrou, and Boone Jenner to their already-formidable forward group. The New York Islanders got Matias Maccelli. The New York Rangers snagged sniper Pavel Dorofeyev, forward Oliver Bjorkstrand, and defenseman Marcus Pettersson.
Washington and Carolina look like the frontrunners. Others put themselves in the mix with Pittsburgh. So, can Muse work some magic and get the most out of this year's squad, same as he did last season?
Can Declan Carlile or Kaedan Korczak be the next Parker Wotherspoon? Can Andrei Kuzmenko get to Anthony Mantha's level? Can Erik Karlsson have a repeat of last season under this coaching staff again? Can Nicholas Robertson hit another level in Pittsburgh under Muse? Hendrix Lapierre?
Simply put, like last season, Muse will play a big role in helping coin-flip players maximize their potential. If those players can turn out - or, even if most turn out - they should be able to stay within arm's length of the top of the division.
We'll keep this short and sweet: Last season, Muse challenged nine calls for goaltender interference. Zero ended up going in his favor.
Was this a rookie head coach phenomenon, an issue with the Penguins' front office, an issue with Muse's judgment, or just a league-wide phenomenon? Muse and the Penguins were disproportionately affected last season, even if goaltender interference is a league-wide concern as far as inconsistency.
Will he get any kind of benefit in 2026-27? Will he be more calculated in his decisions to challenge? Although it literally can't get any worse, seeing how officiating responds to Muse next season in comparison to his first behind the bench will be one of the more interesting storylines to follow.
Brad Hunt’s professional hockey career has officially come to an end.
The former Vegas Golden Knights defenseman announced his retirement from professional hockey on social media earlier this week, closing the book on a career that lasted nearly two decades and took him from the BCHL to the NHL, the AHL and, ultimately, a World Championship gold medal with Team Canada.
For Vegas fans, Hunt will be remembered as part of the organization’s early years, joining the Golden Knights for their second season and remaining with the club through the 2018-19 campaign.
Hunt appeared in 58 games for Vegas across the two seasons, recording five goals and 20 assists for 25 points.
While his time with the Golden Knights was relatively brief, it came during an important period in franchise history. Vegas was still establishing itself as an NHL organization after its remarkable inaugural season, and Hunt became one of the many defensemen who helped provide depth on the blue line during those early years.
Hunt’s NHL career went well beyond his time in Vegas, however.
The 37-year-old played 288 regular-season games over parts of 14 NHL seasons, suiting up for seven organizations. Along with the Golden Knights, he spent time with the Edmonton Oilers, St. Louis Blues, Nashville Predators, Colorado Avalanche, Minnesota Wild and Vancouver Canucks.
He finished his NHL career with 20 goals and 60 assists for 80 points.
Much of Hunt’s career was spent in the American Hockey League, where he established himself as one of the league’s most productive offensive defensemen.
Hunt played 422 AHL games for the Chicago Wolves, Oklahoma City Barons, Bakersfield Condors, Colorado Eagles and Hershey Bears, producing 84 goals and 214 assists for 298 points. He was selected to six AHL All-Star Games and recorded four seasons with at least 40 points, including two 50-point campaigns.
That offensive production helped Hunt overcome one of the biggest obstacles he faced throughout his career: his size.
At 5-foot-9, Hunt was never the prototypical NHL defenseman. Instead, he built his career around his skating, puck-moving ability and offensive instincts, continually finding ways to earn opportunities at the highest levels of the sport.
His journey to the NHL began in the BCHL with the Burnaby Express. After putting up 89 points in 122 games, Hunt moved on to Bemidji State University, where he recorded 112 points in 150 NCAA games over four seasons.
From there, he began a professional career that would eventually take him around North America and overseas.
Hunt’s final season came in Finland with Sport Vaasa in 2025-26. He recorded seven goals and 18 assists for 25 points in 53 games before deciding it was time to step away.
And fittingly, Hunt’s final years in hockey also included one of the biggest accomplishments of his career.
He represented Canada at the 2023 IIHF World Championship in Finland, recording three assists while helping Canada capture a gold medal.
Now, after nearly 20 years of chasing the game, Hunt is officially calling it a career.
His résumé includes 288 NHL games, 422 AHL appearances, six AHL All-Star selections and a World Championship gold medal. For the Golden Knights, he will always be part of the group that helped shape the franchise during its formative years.
Not bad for a defenseman who spent his entire career being told he was too small to make it.
