The Utah Mammoth’s decision to part ways with Maksymilian Szuber this summer opened the door for the young defenseman to find a new opportunity in Montreal.
That opportunity became official Monday, with the Canadiens announcing that they had reached an agreement with Szuber on a one-year, two-way contract for the 2026-27 season.
According to PuckPedia, the deal carries an $850,000 NHL cap hit. Szuber will earn $135,000 at the AHL level and is guaranteed at least $175,000 regardless of where he spends the season.
For Utah, the signing puts a bow on the next chapter for a defenseman who spent the past three seasons within the organization after originally joining the franchise when it was still based in Arizona.
The 23-year-old Szuber was selected by the Arizona Coyotes in the sixth round of the 2022 NHL Draft, going 163rd overall. The 6-foot-3, left-shot defenseman developed in Germany with EHC Munich before making the jump to North America in 2023.
He ultimately became a dependable presence for the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners, appearing in exactly 200 regular-season games over three seasons. During that span, Szuber produced 25 goals and 62 assists for 87 points while accumulating 162 penalty minutes.
His NHL experience, however, remained limited to a single appearance with Arizona during the 2023-24 season.
Szuber showed enough promise to remain part of the organization’s defensive depth, but the Mammoth’s blue-line picture became increasingly crowded. The emergence of prospects such as Dmitri Simashev and Maveric Lamoureux eventually pushed Szuber further down the organizational depth chart.
That ultimately contributed to his departure from Utah.
The Mammoth traded Szuber to the Montreal Canadiens in June, receiving the rights to forward Joshua Roy in return. Roy, 22, became the centerpiece of the deal from Utah’s perspective as the organization continued reshaping its prospect pool.
Now, Szuber gets a fresh opportunity with Montreal.
The Canadiens are coming off a season in which they advanced all the way to the Eastern Conference Final, and their blue-line competition figures to be intense heading into training camp. Szuber will have to fight for an opportunity at the NHL level, but his size, left-handed shot and experience in the AHL give him a legitimate foundation to build upon.
His new contract also gives him some financial security while providing Montreal with a low-cost option capable of providing organizational depth.
For Utah, meanwhile, Szuber’s signing is another reminder of how quickly the Mammoth’s roster and prospect landscape continues to evolve. A player who spent three years developing within the organization is now moving on, while the asset acquired in his departure gives Utah another young piece to evaluate moving forward.
Montreal Canadiens forward Oliver Kapanen had a solid 2025-26 season for the Original Six club. In 82 games this past campaign, he posted 22 goals, 15 assists, and 37 points. While he has held off the scoresheet in his seven playoff appearances for Montreal, it was still a successful year for the skilled forward.
Now, Kapanen will be looking to continue to develop in the right direction next season. If he can take his offensive game to a new level and continue to build on his two-way play, he could cement himself as a very important part of the Canadiens' forward group.
When noting that Kapanen is still just 23 years old and only really getting his NHL career started, there is no question that he has the potential to hit a new level for the Canadiens in 2026-27. The young center has a lot of upside, and it would be significant for the Canadiens if he can improve further next season.
It is going to be interesting to see what kind of season Kapanen can put together for the Canadiens in 2026-27. Due to his high potential, it is clear that he is a young forward who fans should be watching extra closely.
Marko Daňo, an Austrian-born Slovak, was drafted by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round, 27th overall, at the 2013 NHL Entry 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.
On June 30, 2015, before he even started his sophomore season, he was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks along with Artem Anisimov, Jeremy Morin, Corey Tropp, and Columbus' 4th-round pick in exchange for Brandon Saad, Michael Paliotta, and Alex Broadhurst. He ended his time in Chicago by totaling 2 points in 13 games.
Less than one year later, Daňo was traded again, this time to the Winnipeg Jets. He played a total of 82 games over three seasons with the Jets, scoring 10 goals and netting 22 points.
Winnipeg would waive him in October of 2018, when he was then claimed by Colorado. Just over a month later, the Avs put him on waivers again, where he would be claimed by Winnipeg.
In 2019, he was not tendered an offer by the Jets. He signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Blue Jackets on August 8th. He played three games for Columbus that season but spent most of his time in Cleveland. He played 46 games for the Monsters, scored 4 goals, and totaled 19 points.
In his AHL career, he played in 199 games and had 102 points. During his time playing for the Springfield Falcons, which was the CBJ's AHL team in 2014 & 2015, as well as the Cleveland Monsters, Daňo scored 17 goals and had 44 total points.
Daňo left for Europe in 2021, where he remains to this day. He has played for HC Oceláři Třinec since 2021 and has also played for Czechia in the Olympics and World Cup.
There are 56 days left until opening night at NWA, and Marko Daňo could've been one of those players who would've done well in Columbus for years. He was traded for Brandon Saad, who was then traded back to Chicago for Artemi Panarin a few years later. So, in the end, the deal sending Daňo to Chicago was definitely worth it.
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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.
Will the Sabres add scoring help before the beginning of training camp?
32. Sean Keohane - D (Harvard - NCAA)
Keohane was selected in the sixth round of the 2023 NHL Draft and is a long-range prospect with impressive physical tools. A native of the Boston area, the blueliner played at Dexter Southfield Prep in Massachusetts and was slated to play a full season in the USHL with Tri-City before heading to Harvard, but after 16 games, he shifted to West Kelowna in the BCHL, where he posted 14 points (6 goals, 8 assists) in 25 games.
Elite Prospects indicates that Keohane “flashes nuanced defensive skating, allowing him to push an absurd amount of aggression defending the rush. He's physical, jumping off the net front to punish attackers on the end boards and tries to clog lanes with anticipation-based reads, pushing nastiness after the whistle.”
The 6’4”, 205 lb. defenseman had two assists in 11 games for Harvard as a freshman and in an increased role with the Crimson last season, he posted three points (2 goals, 1 assist) in 34 games. The 21-year-old has holes in his game at both ends of the ice that could be honed with another two years at Harvard, which has traditionally done a good job at developing prospects, but those hopes may have taken a hit after head coach Ted Donato departed for an NHL job with New Jersey.
PITTSBURGH, PA - APRIL 11: Pittsburgh Penguins right wing Egor Chinakhov (59) looks on during the second period in the NHL game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Washington Capitals on April 11, 2026, at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA. (Photo by Jeanine Leech/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
We continue our look at some over/unders for the 2026-27 Pittsburgh Penguins, and today we turn our attention to their secondary players. The players on that list include: Egor Chinakhov, Rickard Rakell, Tommy Novak, Elmer Soderblom and Samuel Girard. They are not new players, they are not among the Penguins’ youngest players, they are not quite depth players, and they are not the Penguins’ top core players. But they are still players that should be expected to play a significant role and produce this season.
Here is a quick look at the other over/unders we have looked at so far:
Let’s get into today’s players and potential numbers.
Egor Chinakhov: Over/under 28.5 goals
There were a lot of big (and surprising) developments for the 2025-26 Penguins, and one of the most significant was the in-season acquisition of Egor Chinakhov from the Columbus Blue Jackets. It was not only his acquisition that made a difference, it was also the way that he arrived and immediately started to reach his full potential as a player, both with and without the puck. He was one of their best and most impactful players in the second half of the season, and looked like the player Columbus had always hoped he could be.
He finished the season with a career-high 21 goals and 42 total points between the two teams, including 18 goals and 36 total points in his 43 games with the Penguins.
Those numbers with the Penguins come out to a 34-goal, 68-point pace over 82 games.
That is first-line production, and when you add in how improved he was defensively he looked like a potential star.
The question is what is he going to do over a full-season?
Was that performance with the Penguins a sign of what he can, and will, be? Or was it simply a hot streak where everything clicked for a talented, but still inconsistent player for a brief period of time?
I think the answer to that question resides somewhere in the middle.
He’s clearly better than he showed in Columbus, and very likely needed a fresh start and a different environment with different voices leading him to start reaching that potential.
But I also don’t know if I expect him to spend a full season shooting over 17 percent. His shot is objectively great, but there might be some regression that comes there. I could see a situation unfolding where he might be the same player, or perhaps even improve, while not scoring goals at the exact same pace as he did a year ago with the Penguins.
With that said, 28.5 seems like a good target line. It’s still very good. It’s still very productive. But it might just be a little bit of a slower pace.
Rickard Rakell: Over/under 30.5 goals
I feel like Rickard Rakell’s time with the Penguins has been a little underappreciated. He had one down year in 2023-24, but other than that has scored like a top-line player and owns what has become a pretty team-friendly contract under the rising salary cap.
He’s good. He is one of the few positive things that can be associated with the Ron Hextall era.
He also showed this past season he can be pretty versatile and held his own at center when the Penguins needed it.
In his four seasons with the Penguins his 82-game goal paces have been 28, 17.5, 35 and 32.8. That’s pretty good, and it’s not hard to spot the outlier. His past two seasons have been outstanding from an offensive perspective, and especially as a finisher.
He is going to be 33 years old this season, so there is a chance he starts to slow down, but after scoring at a 32-goal pace in back-to-back seasons I am not sure he is going to just suddenly fall off the map.
The big thing that might limit him is the potential for injury as he has missed at least 10 games in two of the past four years. But if he stays healthy? Thirty goals should definitely be on the table.
Tommy Novak: Over/under 15 minutes of ice-time per game
At this point we have a pretty good idea of what Novak is as a player. He’s a very capable middle-six forward that can play a variety of roles up and down the lineup, and is probably going to score you between 15-20 goals and 40-45 points.
He is talented, but a little inconsistent.
He has obvious skill, but sometimes it leaves you wanting more.
He is a good player, but there is a very obvious ceiling on what he is.
The Penguins also seem to really like him, as evidence by the fact he just a received a three-year contract extension.
For his over/under I am focussing more on role and usage than production, and I am wondering if he takes on a bigger role than before.
For his career he has averaged 13:45 of ice-time per game.
With the Penguins, that number has gone up a little to 14:15 per game.
But over the last two months of the 2025-26 season, and into the playoffs, his ice-time started to reach levels it has never reached at any point of his career, topping 16 minutes per game.
Prior to those two months to close out the 2025-26 season, he only had three other months in his NHL career where he averaged more than 15 minutes per game, and one of those months came in a month where he played just five games.
With Evgeni Malkin now looking like more of a winger than a center, and with Ben Kindel still only being 19 years old, I wonder if we see Novak take on a more traditional second-line center role from the start of the season and get a slight boost in his ice-time.
Elmer Soderblom: Over/under 10.5 goals
Soderblom was another younger, mid-20s player that the Penguins rolled the dice on. Just as was the case with players like Chinakhov and Novak (and some of this past offseason’s additions), Soderblom was a player that posted strong rate and per-minute stats with his previous team, but never really had a chance to show what he could do with a consistent role.
After joining the Penguins he scored five goals with 10 total points in 20 games, while still posting great underlying numbers.
While his raw box score numbers for his career do not jump off the page, he has still averaged 12 goals per 82 games.
He has obvious skill and tremendous size, and I think there is still some untapped potential in him as a player. He also might get a bigger role than he ever had with the Detroit Red Wings. All of that, combined with a new 84-game season, could put him in a position to reach double-digit goals in a full season for the first time in his career.
Samuel Girard: Over/under plus-6.5 rating
Sam Girard did not have a consistently great debut with the Penguins, but I am not giving up on him still having some sort of positive impact for the Penguins.
He is still only 28 years old, has a track record of success in the NHL, and for as much as he struggled at times with the Penguins he still finished as a plus-5 after coming over in a trade from the Colorado Avalanche.
He has been a plus-6 or better in four of his NHL seasons, including this past season.
It's officially another season, another prospects ranking for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
In years past, this has been a bit easier of an exercise, as there used to be a more clear-cut line between prospects with NHL upside and longshots. However, because of the work that general manager and president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas and his staff have put in during the last several years, the line is blurring a whole lot more - and there is a substantially higher volume of talent in the system.
This time around, making a top-20 list was challenging. So, a few criteria were put into place: To make our list, prospects must be under the age of 26 and have played less than 50 NHL games. This excludes names such as Ben Kindel, Filip Hallander, Oliver Okuliar, and Alexander Alexeyev.
At No. 18, we put the spotlight on forward Ryan Miller, who took pretty significant strides in his development last season. We remain on the forward front for No. 17, where we cover an NCAA center - still unsigned - who continues to improve year-by-year and who has some talent to boot.
No. 17: C Zam Plante
If you've seen the name "Plante" a lot in hockey circles recently, there's a reason for that. The Detroit Red Wings selected Victor Plante in the second round of this year's draft, and they had also selected Max Plante two years earlier in 2024.
Well, then there's the third Plante brother, who the Penguins got their hands on in the fifth round (150th overall) in 2022. No, the eldest Plante has no plans to join his brothers in Detroit as of now, even if he remains unsigned by Pittsburgh up to this point.
But, right now, there's no need to panic, as Zam is set to return to the University of Minnesota-Duluth for another season as Max's linemate. Both finished in the top-five in NCAA scoring during the 2025-26 season, with Max finishing third (25 goals, 52 points in 40 games played) and Zam finishing fifth (20 G, 51 P, 40 GP). This season, Victor is set to join them in Minnesota, too.
Even if there's some magic between Zam and his brothers, though, the Penguins believe they have a pretty cerebral center on his own - and he's a player who keeps getting better every year.
At just 5-foot-9, 172 pounds, size is obviously a bit of a concern for Plante as he moves forward in his development. However, not only is Plante good in all three zones, he's also a cerebral player, with his playmaking ability standing out above all else. Even if his brother, Max, is probably the most talented of the brothers, Zam is the one largely driving play on that line.
The Penguins have - especially under Dubas - been drawn to high-IQ players, and Plante is certainly one of them. His creativity, soft hands, vision, ability to expose the soft areas of the ice and create in tight spaces, and distribution skills could certainly lend to him being a solid complementary piece, perhaps even a middle-six playmaker. After all, he said upon getting drafted that he models his game after Jake Guentzel, who managed to work around his size to become one of the NHL's most creative and effective wingers.
Of course, Plante has quite a long way to go to get even close to Guentzel's level, and beyond his size, he does still need to build a more pronounced defensive game and improve his skating. But his NCAA production cannot be ignored, especially within a league that is notoriously lower-scoring.
Penguins director of player development Tom Kostopoulos commended Plante's impressive showing at the team's annual development camp this summer and commented on Plante's competitiveness being second to none within the organization.
"I feel like any game you put this kid in, he excels at," Kostopoulos said following development camp. "Five-on-five, he thinks his way out. Four-on-four, he makes plays. Three-on-three, I thought he stood out probably more than anyone [during the final tournament in camp]. Just his creativity, his hockey sense... then he can finish and can make plays.
"One of the interesting and cool things about development camp is that we get to know these kids off the ice, too, so we put them in competitions all throughout the week. And, I mean, he won the cornhole tournament. We're at a bowling alley, and he won't sit down from the bowling. We do trivia, he's all over the answers. It seems like anything we play, he's involved in, and guys gravitate to him. He just seems to like competing and winning. From my experience, when you have kids and players like that, it's not a coincidence that they end up on winning teams and that they end up doing well. He's a good kid to have."
Obviously, in order for Plante to make it at the NHL level and at the professional level in general, he will have to continue carrying that winning mindset with him. He will also have to find ways to use his creativity against bigger, better, stronger, and faster professional competition, which is something that the NCAA experience should help segue him into. Even if the potential for a higher ceiling is there, the floor also remains relatively low.
But he is off to a running start, and he only keeps improving. If Plante can find a way to hone his current skillset in professional hockey and translate that into continued production, he could become a key complementary piece of Pittsburgh's future down the line.
Egor Chinakhov may have only played in 43 games for the Pittsburgh Penguins last year, but he made all of them count.
The Penguins acquired Chinakhov from the Columbus Blue Jackets on Dec. 29 for a 2026 second-round pick, a 2027 third-round pick, and forward Danton Heinen. At the time of the trade, Chinakhov was having a miserable season, compiling only three goals and six points in 29 games.
All of that came after he requested a trade from the Blue Jackets during the 2025 offseason. Once the Penguins acquired him, he became a totally different player and gained his confidence, compiling 18 goals and 36 points in 43 games. He finished the season with 21 goals and 42 points in 72 games.
He scored his first goal with the Penguins in only his second game, and it was a beauty. He took a long pass from Benjamin Kindel and showcased his electric release, beating Detroit Red Wings goaltender John Gibson five-hole to make it a 2-0 game in the first period. The Penguins went on to win that game by a final score of 4-1.
From that point on, he couldn't stop scoring. His finest performance as a Penguin last season came during their game against the Boston Bruins on Mar. 8. The Penguins were down 3-0 more than halfway through the game when Chinakhov got them back in it with a blistering wrist shot on the power play.
He was all over the ice in the rest of the game, including on Tommy Novak's overtime winner. He did all of the dirty work and made a beautiful move to the net before Novak finished the play off. That goal gave the Penguins a massive extra point in the standings, helping them make the playoffs for the first time since the 2021-22 season.
His play earned himself a three-year contract with an average annual value of $6.25 million. He has the potential to earn an even bigger payday if he plays well during the deal.
I fully expect Chinakhov to play on the second line with Novak and Evgeni Malkin this upcoming season after how well they played on that line last year. They played 222:55 at 5v5 last season and controlled 51.8% of the expected goals, 52.8% of the scoring chances, and 52.1% of the high-danger chances. There's a potential for those numbers to improve with a full season together.
Chinakhov has great chemistry with both players and can finish the chances that they set up for him. He reads them really well and does a great job finding the soft areas of the ice.
Considering how great his production was after the trade, I think there's a very real possibility that Chinakhov scores 25-30 goals this upcoming season and could even score more than 30 if everything goes perfectly. He has the talent to do it and is in an organization that plays to his strengths extremely well.
I've hinted at it in a couple of other pieces this offseason, but if I'm Dan Muse and Todd Nelson, I'm putting Chinakhov on the top power-play unit. He has the best release on the team and can be a threat from anywhere in the offensive zone. It would also allow him to play with Sidney Crosby more after they played together a little bit at 5v5 last season.
Chinakhov has a ton of potential entering this season and the trade has a chance of looking like even more of a slam dunk if he hits it.
It was the fall of 2025, in Rochester, New York, where Devon Levi was trying to prove something nobody in Buffalo particularly wanted proven.
He was told plenty about where he stood in the only NHL organization he'd ever known when he had been sent down before the season even started. The Sabres already had Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen locked in as their guy. They'd claimed Colten Ellis off waivers from St. Louis, and Ellis went and had a .903 save percentage in a third-string role, which only made things worse for Levi. A goaltender twice named the top goalie in the NCAA, a world juniors silver medalist, a player who'd once looked like Buffalo's answer in net, spent the entire 2025-26 season in the American Hockey League with no real pathway back.
He stayed there the whole year. He kept playing, and on July 1, 2026, his five-year tenure in Western New York ended with a phone call that sent him and a 2028 7th-round pick to Edmonton in exchange for a 3rd-round pick.
The Oilers had been burned by goaltending before. Talbot, then a carousel of names, then Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard carrying the franchise to back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals before the wheels came off. Last year they traded Skinner to Pittsburgh for Tristan Jarry, a swap that was supposed to end the conversation. It didn't. Jarry struggled in Edmonton the way Skinner had struggled everywhere else, and by July the Oilers were right back where they always seem to end up, staring at a crease with more questions than answers.
So they bought two more. Frederik Andersen arrived hours after the Levi trade, a reigning Stanley Cup champion at 36 years old on a one-year, $1 million deal, a clear stopgap rather than a plan. Jarry stayed put, still signed for two more seasons at $5.375 million, his price locked in regardless of how this year goes. And Levi slid in on a contract that runs out at the exact moment everything else about this roster is supposed to change.
Levi hits restricted free agency in the summer of 2027. Jarry becomes extension-eligible that same summer. And roughly $26 million in cap space opens up for Edmonton at that same moment, the biggest single-year jump the organization has had in years. The Oilers essentially have three separate clocks, all set to strike at once, and all waiting on Levi to decide what the outcome will be.
If he plays well, Edmonton walks into 2027 with a cheap, controllable goaltender on an entry-adjacent deal, room to extend him before the market resets, and the rest of that cap space free to spend on the roster around him. Jarry's extension conversation shifts from who the guy is to how the depth behind him is built. If Levi struggles, or simply doesn't get the runway to prove anything, Jarry becomes the goaltender Edmonton has to commit real term to, even though they hoped to spend that money elsewhere. Especially considering Andersen's one-year deal expires and there's no obvious answer waiting behind it.
Goaltending analyst Kevin Woodley has watched Levi's tape closely enough to know what separates this version of him from the one Buffalo gave up on. Woodley has said Levi's is one of the fastest skaters in the NHL, with excellent footwork. It's more of a matter of reining in his aggression. That adjustment is more mental than physical, and could be the whole competition this fall.
Edmonton might create a narrative where Levi looks like the goaltender who dominated junior and college hockey before Buffalo's crease got too crowded to let him prove it, and Stan Bowman solved a decade-long problem for the cost of a third-round pick and a one-year, sub-million-dollar contract. Or, he's simply the seventh or eighth goaltending reset of the past decade, and one more name on a very long list.
Either way, the answer isn't going to come from Andersen, whose contract runs out regardless, or from Jarry, whose price is already locked in no matter what happens this season. It's going to come from the 24-year-old who spent last year in Rochester proving very little to an organization that had already stopped watching, now getting one contract year in Edmonton to prove everything at once.
It is no secret that the Montreal Canadiens have many exciting young players. Due to this, it would not be surprising if a few them get even better next season.
Because of this, let's focus on two Canadiens who have the potential to hit new levels next season.
Ivan Demidov
Ivan Demidov had an excellent rookie season for the Habs in 2025-26, posting 19 goals, 43 assists, and 62 points in 82 games. With numbers like these, he already cemented himself as a very important part of the Canadiens' top six. Yet, with Demidov being only 20 years old and entering his second full season with the Habs, it would not be surprising in the slightest if his offensive totals jump up next season. There is a ton to like about the young forward's game, and he has the potential to blossom into a superstar.
Jacob Fowler
Jacob Fowler left a fantastic first impression with the Canadiens last season. In his first 17 career NHL games with the Habs in 2025-26, he posted a 9-6-2 record, a .908 save percentage, a 2.43 goals-against average, and one shutout. The 21-year-old goalie looked very comfortable in his first taste of NHL action, and there is no question that he could elevate his game further with the Canadiens next season.
Last week, Pavel Dorofeyev spoke to the media in person for the first time as a member of the New York Rangers at the Shoulder Check Showcase.
Dorofeyev, who was traded from the Las Vegas Golden Knights to the Rangers, is beginning to adapt to his new home.
“Right now, just trying to settle down, trying to move all my stuff to the New York area and get ready for the upcoming season.”
The 25-year-old forward is generally familiar with the area, as he’s been training at Prentiss Hockey in Connecticut.
Through training with Ben Prentiss over the past three years, Dorofeyev has gotten to know some of his new Ranger teammates, including Adam Fox, J.T. Miller, and Matt Rempe.
Dorofeyev confessed that training at Prentiss Hockey has helped him with this transition to the Rangers organization.
“The past three years, I have been working with Ben, and I kind of know the area now,” Dorofeyev said. “It has kind of helped.”
The Rangers acquired Dorofeyev from the Golden Knights in exchange for the 26th overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, a 2026 third-round pick (92 overall), and a 2028 top-10 protected first-round pick.
Shortly after the trade was finalized, the Rangers and Dorofeyev agreed to a seven-year, $77 million contract extension with an AAV of $11 million.
Training camp is set to begin in September, as we’ll get our first look at Dorofeyev with the Blueshirts.
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 never fulfilled expectations is former top-10 pick Tyson Jost. The 28-year-old was selected 10th overall at the 2016 NHL Draft in Buffalo by Colorado, and played six seasons for the Avalanche before being dealt to Minnesota at the 2022 trade deadline. He spent less than a year with the Wild before being claimed by the Sabres in November.
Will the Sabres add any scoring help before the start of training camp?
In 102 games with Buffalo, Jost scored 28 points (10 goals, 18 assists) and was part of the squad that came within a point of snapping the Sabres playoff drought, which led GM Kevyn Adams to bring back the roster in it’s entirety. The next season, after scoring only six points in 43 games, he was demoted to AHL Rochester.
In 2024, he signed a one-year deal with Carolina and split time between the Hurricanes and AHL Chicago, and was re-signed last summer, but Jost was claimed by Nashville before the regular season and played 69 games in Music City, scoring 16 points (8 goals, 8 assists).
Outlook: With it being the first week of August, it is getting to the territory where players are taking any offers from teams in Europe before their training camps begin, or pondering professional tryouts with NHL clubs. Being under the age of 30, it is possible that a club like Calgary or Vancouver, looking to fill out their roster with a veteran, could bring in Jost on a PTO to see if he can earn a spot.
The Florida Panthers were involved in one of the summer’s biggest moves.
Back in late June, the Panthers made a couple moves in a 24-hour span that reminded everyone in the NHL why Florida was the league’s biggest nuisance.
After acquiring a second first-round selection in this summer’s NHL Draft, Panthers General Manager Bill Zito sent three top picks, along with a future second-rounder, to Ottawa in exchange for their captain, Brady Tkachuk.
It was a move that was met with little surprise, as Tkachuk was long rumored to be interested in eventually teaming up with his older brother Matthew in South Florida.
Earlier this week, there was a report that the younger Tkachuk had previously turned down a blockbuster trade that would’ve landed him in a different location.
According to The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford, Tkachuk rejected a trade that would have sent him to the St. Louis Blues.
According to Rutherford, Tkachuk, “didn’t want to come to St. Louis.”
Jeremy Rutherford: The Senators’ Brady Tkachuk didn’t want to come to St. Louis. There were conflicting reports about whether the Stars’ Jason Robertson was interested - The Athletic (7/18)
This lines up with the idea that Tkachuk’s preferred destination was the Panthers, where his brother is locked into a contract through the end of the 2029-30 season.
For those wondering where the St. Louis connection comes from, both Tkachuk brothers were raised in Creve Coeur, a suburb of St. Louis, and the area is where Matthew has a home and spends time during the offseason.
Were you surprised by the news that Brady Tkachuk turned down a trade to St. Louis, or did it seem like a foregone conclusion that he would end up with the Panthers?
Photo caption: Oct 2, 2025;St.Louis, Missouri, USA; Ottawa Senators left wingBradyTkachuk(7) looks on during the third period againsttheSt.LouisBlues at Enterprise Center. (Jeff Curry-Imagn Images)
Four years ago, the Vancouver Canucks made their first first-round selection since 2019, picking Jonathan Lekkerimäki 15th-overall at the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. Including Lekkerimäki, Vancouver made a total of six selections at the 2022 Draft, five of which remain within the team’s system. The lone 2022 draft prospect no longer with the Canucks is Jackson Dorrington, who was traded as part of the package sent to the New York Rangers alongside J.T. Miller. Here’s how the 2025–26 season went for the five remaining Canucks prospects drafted in 2022.
Jonathan Lekkerimäki
2022 R1, 15 OVR
Vancouver Canucks, NHL and Abbotsford Canucks, AHL
For a decent stretch of time after he was drafted, Lekkerimäki was the Canucks’ most intriguing prospect. The forward, best known for his shot and goal-scoring effort, split time between Vancouver and Abbotsford in 2024–25 after making his NHL debut on November 12, 2024 against the Calgary Flames.
Lekkerimäki was one of the players who looked like they would contend for an NHL roster spot in 2025–26 and put up a strong enough effort during the pre-season and training camp to make the team’s opening-night lineup. He scored his first goal of the season on opening night against the Flames and remained in the Canucks’ lineup until an injury sustained on October 19 sidelined him for a month. From then on, he made a couple of appearances for Vancouver, but ultimately skated in a grand total of 13 NHL games in 2025–26.
While he managed to put up consistent offensive numbers in the AHL, scoring 13 goals and seven assists in 21 games with Abbotsford through the season, Lekkerimäki’s injuries ended up keeping him out for the majority of the year. A shoulder injury cut his season off in February, with the forward’s final game of the year taking place on February 18 against the Ontario Reign.
Lekkerimäki has been a player that has gained headline attention as of late, with discourse circulating around what to do with the 22-year-old prospect heading into the 2026–27 season. While his role will ultimately be decided on a variety of roster factors, health being the biggest one, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the forward make Vancouver’s opening night lineup yet again.
Elias Pettersson
2022 R3, 80 OVR
Vancouver Canucks, NHL
Pettersson, the defenceman, may have been the Canucks’ most surprising player from the 2024–25 season. In his first stint in North America, the defenceman played himself into an All-Star nod in the AHL before earning an NHL call-up and eventually a full-time role, replacing veteran Carson Soucy. He didn’t end up back in the AHL until later on in 2025–26.
While Pettersson did play himself into a full-time role in 2025–26, this particular season was a little trickier for the defenceman. Though he did play in 70 games for Vancouver, registering three goals and seven assists, Pettersson was sent down to Abbotsford for a few games after a couple of rough stretches on the blueline. Those didn’t last long, however, as he only ended up playing in three AHL games in 2025–26.
The 2025–26 season was, of course, rough for virtually every member of the Canucks. Regardless of that, Pettersson was still able to be effective, bumping his average TOI of the season from 12:49 minutes in 2024–25 to nearly 15 in 2025–26. Depending on how 2026–27 goes, that average may only go higher.
At this point, Pettersson feels like a shoe-in for a roster spot in 2026–27, especially given the changes Vancouver has made to their blueline in trading Marcus Pettersson and acquiring mentor-like players in Luke Schenn and Jamie Oleksiak. The most likely spot for the defenceman would be on Vancouver’s third-pair, possibly alongside Schenn.
Daimon Gardner
2022 R4, 112 OVR
St. Cloud State University, NCAA
The 2025–26 season was Gardner’s third year in the NCAA and his second as a member of St. Cloud State University. The 22-year-old center set a collegiate career-high in points the season prior with five goals and nine assists in 32 games but wasn’t quite able to replicate that this time around. In 26 games this season, Gardner scored two goals and two assists, marking a new career-low throughout his NCAA career.
As a whole, the 2025–26 season was subpar for St. Cloud State. The Huskies went 16–19–1 on the season, including a record of 9–14–1 in-conference. They lost both of their games against the University of Minnesota-Duluth in the first-round of the NCHC Frozen Faceoff, with Minnesota-Duluth ultimately losing in the NCHC championship round to eventual 2026 NCAA-champion University of Denver.
Gardner will play for the third NCAA team of his collegiate career come the 2026–27 season, as the forward has transfered to Minnesota State University (Mankato).
Ty Young
2022 R5, 144 OVR
Abbotsford Canucks, AHL and Kalamazoo Wings, ECHL
Young entered the 2025–26 season looking to build off a rookie pro season that saw him make starts at both the AHL and ECHL level. He played in a total of 33 games, registering a .904 SV% in the AHL and .926 SV% at the ECHL level.
The goaltender’s sophomore pro season went differently, though it started with a bit of a whirlwind.
At the beginning of November, with only three AHL games under his belt for the season, Young was forced into the starter’s role after injuries to both Vancouver and Abbotsford’s lineup left the AHL Canucks with only Young available to play. The rough start resulted in Young not notching his first AHL win of the season until his ninth game of the year, after taking a near three-month stint back in the ECHL with the Kalamazoo Wings.
Once March came around, bounces finally seemed to start going in Young’s way at the AHL level. The goaltender won his first three starts of the month with Abbotsford, also ending the year with a personal three-game win-streak. As a result, he finished the year with a record of 6–10–1, a 3.36 GAA, and a .884 SV%, also recording two shutouts.
Where Young plays next season will be heavily dependent on how Vancouver chooses to approach their goaltending situation. Nikita Tolopilo will be the player in net to watch, as if he stays up in the NHL with Vancouver, there will be more room in Abbotsford’s crease for players like Young and Koskenvuo.
Photo Credit: Kaja Antic-THN
Kirill Kudryavtsev
2022 R7, 208 OVR
Abbotsford Canucks, AHL
Kudryavtsev made his pro hockey debut in 2024–25 and has only seemed to impress since then. The defenceman played his way into a full-time role in his rookie AHL season and made himself effective during Abbotsford’s Calder Cup run in 2025. He also made his NHL debut in that same season, skating in his first game on April 14 against the San Jose Sharks.
The 2025–26 season was yet another reflection of how impressive Kudryavtsev has been throughout the past couple of years. With Abbotsford’s D-core heavily depleted after the 2025 off-season, as well as movement with the NHL club, Kudryavtsev found himself taking on sizable minutes as a sophomore. While he did end up being named Abbotsford’s representative at the AHL All-Star Challenge, an injury took the defenceman out of competition for two months.
Kudryavtsev returned to Abbotsford’s lineup in March, skating with the team for about a month before he was called-up to Vancouver and made his season debut at the NHL level. He scored his first NHL point on April 12 against the Anaheim Ducks, finishing his season’s NHL run with two points in three games. At the AHL level, Kudryavtsev’s 2025–26 season ended with the defenceman potting two goals and 18 assists in 44 games.
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It’s no secret that the offseason of 2026 didn’t go according to plan for general manager Pat Verbeek and the Anaheim Ducks. After a season where they made the playoffs and seemingly turned the corner on their long rebuild, they were in a prime position to add a significant piece or two to their depth chart and take another sizable step toward Stanley Cup contention in the near future.
A historic offer sheet later, and their entire cap structure has been detrimentally altered. They’ll now have to rely on their current young core to take another considerable step in their development into stardom. They’ll also need their young secondary pieces to assume larger roles in their nightly lineups and reach their potential quicker than anticipated.
Once armed with the most projected cap space in the NHL, the Ducks will now likely be forced to move a veteran contract or two to fit star forward Cutter Gauthier’s eventual new contract under the cap ceiling before the start of the season (or at some point before injured forward Troy Terry is slated to return to the lineup in late autumn).
Heading into the offseason, the two most notable areas in need of improvement on the Ducks’ depth chart were on the right side of the blueline and at the center position, on the second line, behind Leo Carlsson.
The right side of the blueline will now mostly lean heavily on youth, with a combination of Ian Moore, Drew Helleson, Tristan Luneau, and lone veteran Nick Jensen. The center group is projected to remain the same as it was in May, when they lost in the second round to the eventual Western Conference Champion Vegas Golden Knights, and consists of Carlsson, Mikael Granlund, Ryan Poehling, and Tim Washe.
However, the Ducks may have a hidden arrow in their quiver when it comes to addressing their current suboptimal middle-six center situation.
“Well, as you see it now, we have options,” Verbeek said after the Ducks traded Mason McTavish at the 2026 NHL Draft. “Cutter’s played center before. Roger McQueen, we’re going to see what he looks like when he gets to camp. So, we have options. We’re just trying to see where these players are going to shake out when training camp arrives.”
Cutter Gauthier (22) will be entering his third full season in the NHL in 2026-27. After a rookie 2024-25 year that saw him struggle to maintain a role in the top nine under former head coach Greg Cronin, yet still managing to score 44 points (20-24=44) in 82 games, he broke out last season and established himself as a top-20 winger in the NHL and a difference-maker, leading the Ducks in scoring with 69 points (41-28=69) in 76 games. He became the first Ducks player to score 40 goals in a season since Corey Perry in 2013-14 and just the fourth Ducks player in history to do so, joining Perry, Paul Kariya, and Teemu Selanne.
Before his jump to the NHL from the NCAA at Boston College, and during his time with the USNTDP in juniors, Gauthier played down the middle of the ice as a center. He was selected at the top of the first round by the Philadelphia Flyers (5th overall in 2022) as a player who could play either forward position and provide instant offense. He did just that during his collegiate career, scoring 102 points (54-48=102) in 73 games at BC over two seasons.
Gauthier always projected as more of a winger, given his skill set and how he operates on the ice. He provides elite straight-line speed, has a feel for where to be and how to position himself in dangerous areas of the ice, and possesses one of the most deadly releases in the NHL. His shot is undoubtedly one of the best the sport of hockey has ever seen.
Gauthier’s production at a young age and the contract that his common linemate, Carlsson, is now under ($18 million AAV) have given Gauthier a high percentage of leverage in his current extension negotiations with the Ducks. Without knowledge of the range in which the final number will land, it’s entirely conceivable that Gauthier’s AAV comes in around the number Connor Bedard recently signed for with the Chicago Blackhawks, $15 million.
Assuming that hypothetical $15 million AAV, it would render Gauthier the third-highest paid (tied) player in the NHL, and it’s increasingly likely he’ll be, at the very least, within the top ten. Given the roster makeup, can the Ducks ultimately justify paying that salary to a winger?
The Ducks are already projected to ice a top-heavy depth chart on a nightly basis. Carlsson’s contract will eat 17.3% of the cap for the 2026-27 season, and if Gauthier comes in around $13-16 million, roughly 30% of their cap (minimum) will be distributed to just two players. Shifting Gauthier to center and playing him on the second line would, in theory, allow the Ducks to distribute their high-end talent more evenly throughout the lineup, allow Gauthier a greater chance to impact games, and a better opportunity to merit his projected AAV by playing a more premium position.
IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Faceoffs and faceoff percentages are not proven to alter the outcome of a game to a high degree, but they’re one of the minor details that coaches emphasize, and one that allows a team to begin a shift with possession of the puck. In 2025-26, when called upon, Gauthier won 102 of 208 draws (49%), good enough for fourth on the Ducks among players who took over 100 draws.
After the draw, Gauthier’s ability to play meaningful minutes down the middle comes more into question. He has the goal-line-to-goal-line speed necessary to play center in head coach Joel Quenneville’s system, one proven demanding of those who play there. In limited opportunities, he’s provided a quality defensive impact and has done fairly well to round out the disruptive aspects of his game on the defensive side of the puck in his young career.
Struggles with a potential shift to the middle may lie in an inability to transport pucks through the middle of neutral ice and drive play with change of pace or manipulative sequences with the puck on his stick. When he’d been called upon in the past to act as the trailer on the power play, he had difficulties gaining clean entry and stickhandling through traffic at high speeds. He’s also not one to quarterback offensive zone cycle sequences or create time and space for himself and teammates.
Without play-driving improvement (something he’s entirely capable of), a shift to the middle for Gauthier may only work if he’s placed on a line with wingers who rely on forechecking and winning pucks back to generate offense or wingers who can assume the playmaking duties for his line.
Sliding Gauthier from the wing to the middle and allowing him to develop those aspects of his game could ultimately provide the Ducks with more options in the present and future when constructing their lineups, allow players like Roger McQueen, Eric Nilson, or Lucas Pettersson to marinate longer in lower levels, and add needed depth as they attempt to remain competitive in the immediate future.
First things first, of course, the Ducks and Gauthier will need to come to an agreement on a new contract before the start of training camp to fully optimize him and the team around him heading into another pivotal season in Anaheim.
If there’s one position the Calgary Flames aren’t short on heading into the 2026-27 season, it’s defence.
For the first time in quite a while, Calgary has more NHL-calibre defencemen than available roster spots. That’s a good problem to have, but it’s still a problem.
Whether Craig Conroy decides to let training camp sort things out or makes another trade before opening night, somebody is going to be squeezed out. The Flames have veterans, recent acquisitions, established NHLers and some of the organization’s best prospects all competing for essentially seven jobs.
Here’s how the blue line currently shakes out.
Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
The Locks
These are the players that should have every opportunity to open the season with the Flames.
Kevin Bahl
Bahl quietly became one of Calgary’s most dependable defencemen during the 2025-26 season. His game isn’t flashy, but that’s exactly why he’s valuable. He defends well, plays with size, kills plays early and gives the Flames a steady presence while the forward group continues getting younger.
He’s as close to a lock as you’ll find.
Simon Nemec
The Flames didn’t acquire Simon Nemec to ease him into the lineup.
Last season wasn’t quite the offensive explosion many expected from Parekh.
Injuries and the adjustment to professional hockey limited him to four goals and nine points in 37 games, but none of that changes his ceiling.
This is still the same player who exploded for 107 points (33 goals, 74 assists) in his final junior season after being selected ninth overall by Calgary in 2024.
Kuznetsov may not generate many headlines, but he’s earned his spot.
After beginning the season with the Wranglers, he never looked back once he received his NHL opportunity. He appeared in 57 games, recording 12 points (four goals, eight assists), while proving he can be trusted in a shutdown role.
His value comes from playing a simple, dependable game, and that’s exactly what Calgary needs.
Jake Middleton
Acquired from Minnesota in the Blake Coleman/Olli Määttä trade, Middleton adds another element to Calgary’s defence.
He’s physical, experienced, difficult to play against and brings leadership to a relatively young group.
This is where things become much more interesting.
Zach Whitecloud
Whitecloud is an NHL player. There’s really no debate there.
The Stanley Cup champion has now played nine NHL seasons and appeared in 78 games last year, including 31 after arriving in Calgary as part of the Rasmus Andersson trade.
He immediately fit into the room and checks every box you’d want for a young team: leadership, experience and reliability.
Ironically, those same qualities are exactly what could make him valuable on the trade market.
The Flames would have no problem keeping him, but if another contender comes calling, Whitecloud could quickly become one of Calgary’s most attractive trade pieces.
Hunter Brzustewicz
Brzustewicz might be the toughest player on the entire blue line to project.
The 21-year-old has legitimate offensive upside after finishing his final junior season with 92 points (13 goals, 79 assists). He followed that with an impressive first professional season, recording 32 points (five goals, 27 assists) in 70 games with the Wranglers, before appearing in 34 NHL games last season.
The idea of eventually having both Brzustewicz and Parekh running power plays is exciting.
The problem isn’t talent. It’s opportunity.
With so many NHL-ready defencemen already ahead of him, Brzustewicz could begin the season back in the AHL. He also has enough value to headline a trade package if Calgary decides to pursue a proven top-six forward.
Credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
Likely Heading to the Wranglers
Unless someone forces the issue during training camp, these two appear destined to begin the year in the AHL.
Abram Wiebe
Wiebe had an outstanding season at North Dakota, earning multiple NCHC Defenceman of the Week honours, NCHC Player of the Month recognition in December and a spot on the conference’s All-Academic Team.
Acquired in the Andersson trade, he also received a brief four-game NHL look to finish the season.
There’s plenty to like, but another year of professional development with the Wranglers probably makes the most sense.
Carson Carels
Could Carson Carels make the team? Absolutely. Will the Flames rush him? Probably not.
The sixth-overall pick from the 2026 NHL Draft is coming off a tremendous season with Prince George, notching 73 points (20 goals, 53 assists) in just 58 games.
The offensive skill is obvious, but young defencemen generally need more time than forwards.
If history is any indication, Calgary will likely take the patient route, even if fans are hoping to see the 18-year-old wearing the Flaming “C” sooner rather than later.
Credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
Fighting for Their NHL Future
With so much depth, somebody is inevitably going to lose out.
Joel Hanley
Hanley filled an important role last season, particularly helping stabilize Parekh early in the year. But roster construction matters.
With Calgary prioritizing younger players with long-term upside, it’s difficult to find a clear path for Hanley to play regularly. He feels like a candidate to be wearing another jersey before opening night.
Brayden Pachal
Pachal handled a difficult season as professionally as anyone could. He spent much of the year as the extra defenceman, appearing in 39 games while staying ready whenever his number was called.
The issue is that Middleton now fills many of the same physical, hard-nosed responsibilities, leaving Pachal without a clear role. If he can’t win a bottom-pairing job in camp, waivers, or a trade, could be his next stop.
Final Thoughts
This is exactly the kind of ‘problem’ rebuilding teams hope to have.
Whether the Flames make another trade before camp or simply let the competition play out, one thing is certain: there won’t be many jobs handed out. Every spot on the blue line will have to be earned, and that’s a healthy place for this organization to be heading into the 2026-27 season.
