For nearly two years, Semyon Varlamov's NHL career looked like it might be over.
Two knee surgeries and a long recovery kept the former Colorado Avalanche goaltender away from the game, with each passing month making a return seem less likely.
Now, at 38 years old, Varlamov is getting ready to come back.
And for Avalanche fans, his story may sound familiar.
Varlamov is about to have his own Gabe Landeskog moment.
The veteran goaltender is expected to be a full participant when the New York Islanders open training camp later this month. He last played in an NHL game on Nov. 29, 2024.
Islanders general manager Mathieu Darche described Varlamov's return as "almost a miracle," while making it clear the goaltender has earned the opportunity through months of hard work.
"He's doing great, actually. It's almost a miracle," Darche told NHL.com. "Well, it's not a miracle because he's really put in the work."
Varlamov has been skating four or five times a week and is doing so without pain or medication. The Islanders expect him to play in preseason games as he works his way back.
For someone who hasn't played an NHL game in nearly two years, that's a remarkable development.
Varlamov spent eight seasons with the Avalanche from 2011-12 through 2018-19, serving as their starting goaltender through a difficult stretch in franchise history. He played 389 games in Colorado, posting a 2.79 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage.
He’s been with the Islanders since, but injuries have continued to plague the veteran, limiting him to just 10 games during the 2024-25 season.
At that point, it was reasonable to wonder whether Varlamov had played his final NHL game.
Landeskog knows that feeling all too well.
The Avalanche captain missed nearly three full seasons because of a serious knee injury, leaving plenty of doubt about whether he would ever return. He eventually did, making his long-awaited comeback during the 2025-26 season.
Now Varlamov is trying to write a similar comeback story.
The circumstances are different, but the uncertainty is familiar. A veteran player with a long history of knee problems appeared to be nearing the end of his career, only to find a way back onto the ice.
Varlamov has already played 621 NHL games, recording a .916 save percentage and 41 shutouts during his career.
He doesn't have anything left to prove.
But nearly two years after his last NHL appearance, Varlamov is getting another chance to add to his career.
For the Avalanche fans who watched him guard Colorado's net for eight seasons, that's pretty special.
SAINT PETERSBURG, RUSSIA - 2026/01/03: Ilya Nabokov (30) of Metallurg Hockey Club seen in action during the Hockey match, Kontinental Hockey League 2025/2026 between Shanghai Dragons China and Metallurg Magnitogorsk at the SKA Arena. (Final score; Shanghai Dragons 3:7 Metallurg Magnitogorsk). (Photo by Maksim Konstantinov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
The Top 25 Under 25 is a collaboration by Mile High Hockey staff members. Seven writers have ranked players under the age of 25 in the Colorado Avalancheorganization as of September 1, 2026. Now, we’ll count down each of the 25 players ranked.
We have finally arrived at the #1 Colorado Avalanche prospect under 25 years of age; returning to defend his #1 status in 2025 is goaltender Ilya Nabokov.
It’s been an interesting journey and case study getting to know the players in the Avalanche system. Along the way, we’ve discussed players with a clear path to the NHL, some whose path could materialize down the road, and others who will need a miracle to earn a debut.
Make no mistake, Ilya Nabokov will play in the NHL, as he’s been promised. These promises have been enough to get him to North America for a debut season with the Colorado Eagles, for now.
I’m anxious to get an up-close look at Ilya Nabokov this year
Now the question is, are the promises enough to immediately slot Nabokov over Trent Miner as the starter in Loveland? Miner has already proven to be among the better AHL netminders and has had appearances in the NHL, including an NHL shutout.
It’s likely the two split time, but I’d imagine that wouldn’t sit well with Nabokov, who left behind legitimate success (KHL MVP, KHL ROY, Gagarin Cup Champion, KHL Playoff MVP) when he left the KHL.
The key to success and winning the gig, I think, will come at training camp and in the early stages of the regular season. If Ilya can showcase his aggressive and athletic talents at camp against the best of the best, it will be hard to keep him out of the starter’s crease in Loveland.
As far as Nabokov playing NHL hockey, after Scott Wedgewood’s deal comes to an end, he appears to be the natural fill-in to back up MacKenzie Blackwood and a potential starter in Colorado one day.
Nabokov has the tools and the mindset of a proven champion netminder. The question remains: will his game translate to the North American game? I’m optimistic.
Let us know what you think of this prospect in the comments!
If you’d like to hear more of our thoughts on each prospect, head to the Mile High Hockey Lab catalogHERE!
The Toronto Maple Leafs announced that they have signed Brendan Brisson to a one-year contract on Friday. His salary cap hit is $850,00, according to PuckPedia. In the minors, he'll earn $300,000.
Brisson, 24, is coming off a one-year contract. He was a pending RFA at the beginning of this off-season, but the New York Rangers decided not to qualify him, which made him a UFA.
The left winger still has a lot to prove at the NHL level. In his career, he's played 27 games across parts of three seasons, registering two goals and nine points.
Brisson spent this past season with the Rangers, but played just three games in the NHL. Most of his time was in the AHL with the Hartford Wolf Pack. In the minors, he produced 19 goals and 37 points and a minus-32 rating on a team that finished last in the league.
In terms of his role in the Maple Leafs organization, he'll be a depth player who spends most of his time in the minors with the Toronto Marlies, coming off a Calder Cup championship.
Brisson is still a relatively young player. If he shows some promise in the minors this coming season, perhaps the Leafs would be inclined to keep him around a bit longer. And in a perfect world, Brisson should have many years of professional hockey in his locker.
The Vegas Golden Knights were the team that drafted Brisson. He was selected in the first round of the 2020 draft with the 20th overall pick. Before being traded to New York, he made nine NHL appearances for Vegas and didn't mark a single point while averaging 9:52 per game. With the AHL's Henderson Silver Knights, he scored five goals and 19 points in 45 games.
His best stint in the NHL was in 2023-24 when he played 15 NHL games that year. Brisson went on to score two goals and eight points for the Golden Knights.
The 2022-23 season marked his best AHL season, scoring 18 goals and 37 points in 58 contests.
Brisson had a rather impressive stretch before entering the professional leagues. In 2019-20, he was a member of the Chicago Steel in the USHL. In what was his rookie season, he scored 24 goals and 59 points in 45 appearances. That was good enough to get him named the USHL rookie of the year.
The 6-foot forward also has a World Junior Championship gold medal under his belt from the 2021 tournament. Brisson notched two goals in seven games for Team USA.
He also competed in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics for the Americans, recording two goals in four games.
Brisson was also successful in the NCAA, playing two seasons for the University of Michigan in 2020-21 and 2021-22. In his rookie season at the college level, he scored 10 goals and 21 points in 24 games. He followed that up with a 21-goal and 42-point campaign in 38 games the next year.
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PITTSBURGH, PA - APRIL 11: Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Arturs Silovs (37) makes a save as Washington Capitals left wing Brandon Duhaime (22) tries to tip the puck past him during the first 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
It’s something of a similar story in Pittsburgh. After finishing second in the Metro last season, after a string of campaigns in the division’s basement before that, the Penguins enter 2026-27 looking to prove their resurgence was more than a one-year fluke.
They’ll do so with a lineup that’s seen plenty of turnover this summer. New offensive talents Andrei Kuzmenko and Nick Robertson are dotted among the forward corps’ bottom six, and new blue-liners Trevor van Riemsdyk and Kaedan Korczak will slot in to replace key depth pieces. The most important change, though, might be the fact that the net will be turned over to young Arturs Silovs.
The 25-year-old split netminding duties with a veteran partner for the entirety of last season — first with Tristan Jarry and then Stuart Skinner following the trade that brought the two-time Cup finalist to Pittsburgh. It was Skinner who got the start for the first few games of the post-season, before Silovs took over and nearly pulled Pittsburgh back from an 0-3 series deficit. With Skinner headed to Winnipeg, it’ll be up to Silovs and young Sergei Murashov to keep Sidney Crosby’s club in the post-season picture once again.
It’s an interesting choice by them. The low-hanging fruit would be to pick Sidney Crosby or Erik Karlsson and call it a day. Neither of which would be an incorrect answer. Without excellent seasons from the team’s best forward and/or its best defenseman, Pittsburgh’s season is bound to have a very low ceiling.
The choice of Silovs isn’t a bad one. It highlights what we mentioned over the summer – the veteran goalie role filled by Tristan Jarry and then Stuart Skinner last year is out the door. Both players have been maligned at times, not for unfounded reasons, but both were solid last year for the Pens. Between their combined stints, the ‘veteran goalie’ provided a +13.92 goals saved above expected last season (7.59 for Jarry, 6.33 for Skinner). Jamming that together like some Frankenstein creation and the Jarry/Skinner combo would have been the 13th best GSAE goalie in the NHL last season.
Silovs was way down the list at -5.69, 75th among 89 NHL goalies. Sergei Murashov was at -1.66 in his limited NHL action.
If those trends were to continue, the Pens would be just as doomed as any variable. Though you wouldn’t see the perspective strictly from stats like save percentage or goals against average, the Pens got a big boost from their vet goalies doing more than their share to step up and make a clutch stop when needed. They didn’t get that as much from the younger goalies, and now the younger group is all that remains moving forward.
As always, there is more to the story. News came out after the year that Silovs was battling through a knee injury late in the season. That didn’t prevent him from playing three tremendous playoff games to keep Pittsburgh’s year alive. The Pens will be counting on that version of Silovs – seen before in the playoffs in Vancouver and in glimpses with Latvia internationally, to step up his level of play. More importantly, he’ll have to maintain it, or keep the valleys as low and brief as possible. That’s been a challenge for him in the past, it grows in significance now that there isn’t an established NHL starter to fall back upon.
In the end, with the way the Pens are built, they will both help a goalie with tremendous support offensively to make up for their shortcomings defensively. This isn’t a team built to try and win 2-1 or even 3-2 type of games. The Pens are going to go out there and try to score four or five goals on any given night and hope that’s enough to stand up for the win. Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn’t their night. As seen last year, they don’t need a Vezina caliber goalie in net, they just need an anchor that can buckle down and pick them up or hold them in games until the offense can kick in and out-score their issues.
That will be Silovs’ big task moving forward as the 1A goalie entering the year. He played 39 games last season and likely won’t be asked for a large increase in that department. In the games he plays, however, the Pens are definitely going to need Silovs to step up and deliver a better GSAE than he was able to provide last season. It’s a big ask and can’t be expected that Silovs alone can rank 13th like the Jarry/Skinner combo did. It’s just going to have to be a lot better than 75th this time around.
As the 2026-27 NHL season nears, many different hockey media outlets have done different variations of player rankings. The Athletic released an NHL player tier ranking, listing some of the most notable names in the league.
From the Toronto Maple Leafs, five players made the cut. Those ranked were Auston Matthews, William Nylander, Matthew Knies, Darren Raddysh and John Tavares.
Every player on the list had an explanation attached to their profile, and most of the Leafs players included had quotes from anonymous NHL executives and coaches.
Matthews was ranked the highest among Maple Leafs representatives. He's slotted in the second tier, called "franchise," in group 'A,' down a full tier from his first-tier rank in the previous three years.
"Based off just last year, I think Auston is a little bit high," a coach said of where Matthews is listed in this ranking.
Toronto's captain scored 27 goals and 53 points in 60 regular-season games last season. That follows 33 goals and 78 points the season before.
"You can't argue anything other than he's an elite player," an executive said. "There's been a slight downward tick (to his game), not having Marner certainly hurt him. ... Matthews is in the right spot."
Nylander is next on the list. He's ranked in tier three, "all-star," in group A. The right winger was the Maple Leafs' leading scorer last season, with 30 goals and 79 points in 65 appearances.
"He's in the top five or so players in the league when he really plays his best," an executive said of Nylander. "His skating, edge work and ability to hold onto the puck is so freaking good. He's so good, and that's why you get so mad at him sometimes when you watch him."
Knies, Raddysh and Tavares all ranked in tier five, "support," in group B.
Knies, 23, continues to grow as a power forward and looks to turn into a star from a strong supporting cast member. He scored 23 goals and recorded a career-high 66 points in 79 games.
Raddysh was certainly a star for the Tampa Bay Lightning on the back end last season, with his 22 goals and 70 points. But from a league-wide perspective and an overview of his entire career, he'll still need to prove that 2025-26 wasn't a one-off.
"If you look at some of these other guys, it's not like they've done it very long either," an executive said of Raddysh. "I think Raddysh is in this blue tier (one tier above) all day."
Tavares is well into the back-nine of his NHL career. Turning 36 before the beginning of the regular season, it's tough to consider the veteran center a star on the grand scale of the NHL. He's still been solid for Toronto, registering a team-high 31 goals last year, totalling 71 points in 82 contests.
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The Vancouver Canucks are just a few weeks away from kicking off the 2026–27 season. In honour of the upcoming campaign, The Hockey News’ Canucks team will be previewing Vancouver’s Pacific Division opponents. Today’s team is the Vegas Golden Knights.
Vegas Golden Knights 2025–26 Season:
Record: 39-26-17
Division Ranking: 1st
Playoffs: Stanley Cup Final Loss
Goals For: 264
Goals Against: 242
Power Play: 24.6%
Penalty Kill: 81.4%
2026 Off-Season Storylines:
Despite making it to the Stanley Cup Final, the Golden Knights decided to part ways with Head Coach John Tortorella. The former Canucks bench boss was hired just before the playoffs after the team decided to fire Bruce Cassidy. As for Vegas' new bench boss, that will be Ryan Craig, who spent the last three years in the AHL with the Henderson Silver Knights.
Overall, the Golden Knights did not make any waves this past off-season. They are bringing back an almost identical roster, with the only major change being a new head coach. As the saying goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Biggest Storyline For The 2026–27 Season:
The biggest storyline heading into next year is whether Vegas will have a Stanley Cup Final visit hangover. On top of a long run, multiple key members of the team also went to the Olympics, which could cause some fatigue. While there is a chance the Golden Knights could start slow out of the gate, they will most likely find their footing before the end of 2026.
Player To Watch:
One player to keep an eye on this season is center William Karlsson. The 33-year-old played just 14 games in the regular season while also missing the first round of the post-season with an injury. If Karlsson can stay healthy, Vegas will have one of the strongest center groups not just in the Western Conference, but across the NHL.
Key Additions:
Marc Gatcomb
Victor Olofsson
Parker Wotherspoon
Ville Heinola
Key Subtractions:
Pavel Dorofeyev
Akira Schmid
Kaedan Korczak
Keegan Kolesar
Schedule Against The Canucks
October 4 vs. Vegas
November 15 @ Vegas
March 25 vs. Vegas
March 31 @ Vegas
Apr 7, 2026; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vegas Golden Knights goalie Carter Hart (79) makes a save on Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Pettersson (40) in the second period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images
Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.
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36 years ago today, on September 4, 1990, the Montreal Canadiens, through Serge Savard, traded Claude Lemieux, who had put up 18 points in just 39 games in the previous season, for Sylvain Turgeon, who had recorded 47 points in 72 games with the New Jersey Devils.
Lemieux went on to play with the Devils for five seasons and win the Stanley Cup for the second time in his career in 1995, also winning the Conn Smythe Trophy with 16 points, including 13 goals in 20 games. Before the start of the next season, Lemieux was sent to the Colorado Avalanche, where he would win two more Stanley Cups, meaning that after leaving the Habs, Lemieux went on to win three more Cups, play another 15 seasons in the NHL (934 games) and score another 597 points.
Meanwhile, Turgeon spent only two seasons with the Canadiens, playing 75 games and scoring 32 points. Luck wasn’t on his side, and he suffered a fractured kneecap in his first year with the Habs, which set the tone for two tumultuous seasons. He was eventually left unprotected in the 1992 expansion draft and selected by the Ottawa Senators, ending his association with the Canadiens. Turgeon would go on to play three seasons for the Senators before hanging up his skates after just 699 games.
That trade wasn’t a great one for Savard, who was reportedly handcuffed by the fact that Lemieux had requested a trade, unhappy with how much ice time he was getting under coach Pat Burns. To this day, the Canadiens could still use a player of the same ilk as Lemieux; he was talented and produced offensively, but he was also a real pain to play against and could get in his opponents’ heads and under their skin.
Thankfully, before he passed tragically this summer, Lemieux had the chance to say goodbye to the public that loved him in the 1980s, as he returned as a torchbearer during the playoffs ahead of the Canadiens’ third game against the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final.
PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 30: Ben Kindel #81 of the Pittsburgh Penguins skates against the Carolina Hurricanes at PPG PAINTS Arena on December 30, 2025 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
On Thursday we dove into the Pittsburgh Penguins roster and how it stacked up with the rest of the league on The Athletic’s player tier ranking, and how it showed the team is lacking some younger, proven impact talent.
Today, we are going to take a similar dive into the prospect pool after The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler published his prospect tier list with the help of some NHL scouts and executives. It is a slightly more promising look at the long-term outlook of the franchise, especially in comparison to where the prospect pool was just a couple of years ago.
In this instance the word “prospect” is doing a lot of work because it also includes young players with something of an NHL track record. It’s basically a look at the best young players connected to an organization, both in and out of the NHL.
Overall, the Penguins have seven players make an appearance on Wheeler’s list, including two players (goalie Sergei Murashov and center Ben Kindel) in the Tier 4 “Star” group.
Harrison Brunicke, Rutger McGroarty, Bill Zonnon, Liam Ruck, and Will Horcoff all appear in the Tier 5 “Contributor” section.
In a vacuum, all of that means nothing without any context with the rest of the league, or within the Penguins farm system itself.
If you go back two years, the Penguins had just one prospect appear, and it was also as a Tier 5 prospect (McGroarty).
So just based on raw numbers, going from one prospect on the list, to three prospects, to seven prospects, all in the span of just two years is a strong increase. Especially when two of the young players moved up into a higher tier.
But how does having seven players on the list stack up with the rest of the league? It is not bad.
Team
Tier 1
Tier 2
Tier 3
Tier 4
Tier 5
Total
Tier 1-2
Chicago
1
0
1
3
6
11
1
San Jose
1
1
5
2
0
9
2
Anaheim
1
0
2
3
3
9
1
Detroit
0
0
0
2
7
9
0
Calgary
0
0
2
2
4
8
0
Nashville
0
0
0
1
7
8
0
Pittsburgh
0
0
0
2
5
7
0
Montreal
0
1
3
2
1
7
1
Utah
0
0
3
3
1
7
0
Vancouver
0
0
2
0
5
7
0
Philadelphia
0
1
1
0
4
6
1
New York Islanders
1
0
0
1
4
6
1
Buffalo
0
0
2
2
2
6
0
Columbus
0
0
1
2
2
5
0
St. Louis
0
0
0
2
3
5
0
Washington
0
0
0
3
2
5
0
Seattle
0
0
1
3
0
4
0
Boston
0
0
1
0
2
3
0
New York Rangers
0
0
1
1
1
3
0
New Jersey
0
0
0
1
2
3
0
Tampa Bay
0
0
0
0
3
3
0
Toronto
0
1
0
0
1
2
1
Winnipeg
0
0
1
0
1
2
0
Edmonton
0
0
0
0
2
2
0
Ottawa
0
0
0
1
1
2
0
Carolina
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
Dallas
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
Los Angeles
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
Minnesota
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
Vegas
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
Colorado
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Florida
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
There are only 10 total teams in the league with at least seven players on the list.
There are only six that have more than that, and only four that have nine or more. Chicago is at the top of the list with 11, while San Jose, Anaheim and Detroit all have nine.
The one area where the Penguins are lacking, again, is in the Tier 1 and Tier 2 prospects, where they have zero (and also zero in Tier 3). But that is also not something that is completely unique to them. There are only seven teams in the league that have one Tier 1 or Tier 2 prospect, with San Jose leading the way with two of them (Macklin Celebrini and Ivar Stenberg). Chicago (Connor Bedard), Anaheim (Leo Carlsson), Montreal (Lane Hutson), Philadelphia (Porter Martone), New York Islanders (Matthew Schaefer) and Toronto (Gavin McKenna) all have one each.
There are simply not a lot of those guys to go around.
It is also important to keep in mind that not everybody on here is going to pan out. Nor do you need them to given the way NHL rosters are actually constructed. If even three of these seven players become NHL regulars I think you take that as a win. Anything after that is probably a bonus.
It then comes down to which players are in that group, and how far they can climb.
I am confident in saying Kindel looks like an NHL player, and as a center there is a lot of value in him. As I said on Thursday, Murashov becoming a “star” player would change a lot of things for the Penguins outlook in both the short-term and long-term outlooks.
Can Brunicke be a No. 2 or 3 defenseman?
Can one of McGroarty, Horcoff or Ruck become a top-six scorer?
Can Zonnon be a middle-six center?
Could a couple of players here be used as trade bait at some point, along with your collection of draft picks, to try and add somebody more significant that is more proven as a younger, impact NHL player?
All of that is still a work in progress, but it is still nice progress in a very short period of time. Especially when you consider the highest pick the Penguins have had over the past two years is No. 11 overall. It is also another reminder that even though this is not taking on the look of a traditional rebuild that we have become accustomed to over the past decades, the Penguins are very much focussed on the future more than the present. The number of draft picks they have accumulated (both already used and both still ahead, as well as the young NHL players they have focused on in trades) is absolutely the sign of a team that is thinking long-term.
They needed to improve their prospect pool. They are in the process of doing that. They still need to find “the guy” somewhere, but there is progress being made.
General manager and president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas and the Pittsburgh Penguins' front office have worked hard to build back up the organizational prospect pool since he was hired in the summer of 2023.
And, on Thursday, yet another prospect ranking list showed just how far they've come in the last three years.
Prospect writer Scott Wheeler of The Athletic released his annual NHL Prospect Tiers list, ranking the top-145 young players in hockey, which is a collaborative effort between other NHL prospect writers from the publication as well as from scouts. Players are divided into five tier categories: (1) MVP, (2) franchise, (3) all-star, (4) star, and (5) support.
Goaltender Sergei Murashov (4B) and center Ben Kindel (4C) were in the "star" tier, while winger Liam Ruck (5B), defenseman Harrison Brunicke (5B), center Will Horcoff (5B), winger Rutger McGroarty (5C), and center Bill Zonnon (5C) were in the "support" tier.
Only six teams in the NHL have more than the Penguins' seven players on the list. In addition, 2026 second-round pick Markus Ruck was acknowledged as one of the players that barely missed the cut for the list.
Even if Pittsburgh doesn't have any talent in the top tiers, the sheer volume of young players on this list speaks to how much Dubas and the Penguins' front office has done to enhance the prospect pool in the last few years. The talent in their system is growing, and they have a handful of players who should make some degree of impact at the NHL level and in an NHL lineup.
And, if the organization's front office - as well as its scouting and development team - keep hitting on their draft selections and continue to acquire the right young players, they only figure to keep adding to the number of young players and prospects that will be featured on lists like this.
Read our 2026 Top-20 Penguins' Prospects list here >>>
Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Arturs Silovs had some ups and downs in his first season with the Penguins last year.
When he was on, he was really on, but when he was off, he was really off. It all culminated in him finishing the regular season with a 19-12-8 record, a 3.07 goals-against average, and an .888 save percentage.
Silovs backed up Stuart Skinner for the first three games of the Penguins' first-round playoff series against the Philadelphia Flyers before he was thrust into the lineup in Game 4. The Penguins were down 3-0 in the series and needed a spark, so they went to Silovs.
Silovs has a history of showing up in the big moments, and he sure did in the series. Yes, the Penguins lost the series in six games, but he still played out of his mind, finishing with a .939 save percentage and a 1.52 goals-against average.
He would've had a shutout in Game 6 if the Penguins had found a way to put one shot past Flyers goaltender Dan Vladar.
Despite the playoff series loss, the Penguins rewarded Silovs with a one-year extension after the season. They want to see what he can do as the 1A goaltender this year before they commit to him for multiple years.
He'll also potentially be pushed by Sergei Murashov after the latter lit up the AHL this past season. Murashov is the favorite to win the backup/1B job, though he will still have to earn it. Joel Blomqvist won't just give him the job during training camp and preseason.
Going back to Silovs, he played in 39 games last year, so if this is going to be a true 1A/1B situation, he's likely going to have to play in at least 42 games since it's now an 84-game season. If he gets to that number, he'd set a career-high in appearances
If Silovs can finish the 2026-27 season with a save percentage around .905, a goals-against average between 2.50 and 2.70, and be positive in goals saved above expected, it'll be a pretty solid success. The Penguins would also have a decent chance at qualifying for the Stanley Cup Playoffs again if Silovs plays that well.
With 29 days remaining until the Detroit Red Wings open the 2026-27 season, we take a look at the top player to have worn jersey No. 29.
The Top No. 29 In Red Wings History: Mike Vernon
Just as it was with Chris Osgood and No. 30, it wasn't a hard choice for who the top player in Red Wings history to have worn jersey No. 29.
That title easily belongs to goaltender Mike Vernon, who won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the Most Valuable Player during the 1997 Stanley Cup Playoffs, leading Detroit to their first title in 42 years.
Vernon, who was selected with the 56th overall pick in the 1981 NHL Draft by the Calgary Flames, would spend the first several years of his career with the franchise, helping them upset the Montreal Canadiens and win the Stanley Cup in 1989.
But his time with the Flames came to a close in the summer of 1994, as he was traded to the Red Wings in return for defenseman Steve Chiasson.
With Vernon in goal, the Red Wings advanced to the 1995 Stanley Cup Final, but were swept in stunning fashion by the New Jersey Devils. Vernon then helped the Red Wings win a record 62 games the following season, though Chris Osgood got the bulk of the starts in the postseason.
Vernon forever endeared himself to Red Wings fans for his role in the infamous "Fight Night at the Joe" on March 26, 1997 when he fought Colorado Avalanche rival Patrick Roy.
While Osgood also got the bulk of the starts for Detroit in the 1996-97 season, head coach Scotty Bowman turned to Vernon's experience in the 1997 postseason, and it paid off in spades.
With a 16-4 record, a 1.76 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage, Vernon was the obvious choice to be named postseason MVP.
Detroit then stunned fans by shipping Vernon to the San Jose Sharks in August of that summer, where he would play the next two and a half seasons before being traded to the Florida Panthers.
Upon completion of his time in Florida, Vernon would play the final two years of his NHL career where it all began - with the Flames. He then retired, having won 385 career games, and would later be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
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Undoubtedly, the strength of the Philadelphia Flyers and the future of the organization lies in their expansive prospect pool, which has grown quite large in recent seasons and became one of the best in the NHL.
The center position is, of course, still seen as a weakness for the Flyers, even after the allocation of three first-round picks to select Jett Luchanko and Jack Nesbitt in back-to-back years.
In a new prospect tier list ranking by Scott Wheeler of The Athletic, with review and some input from scouts and personnel around the league, the two Flyers prospects didn't even make the cut of the top 150 prospects in the NHL right now.
Luchanko and Nesbitt, as well as Alex Bump, were in the group of players who "were considered or generated some conversation but ultimately didn’t get enough love for Tier 5C projections," and that group still features some good talents, such as Luca Cagnoni, Sandis Vilmanis, Quentin Musty, Lenni Hameenaho, and Maveric Lamoureux.
In any case, the Flyers have a projected future superstar, contrary to popular belief, in the eyes of Wheeler and his caddy of NHL scouts and execs.
Flyers' Martone draws comparisons to Rantanen, Robertson
Porter Martone is the highest-ranked Flyers youngster on this list, and for good reason. The 19-year-old dominated the NCAA with 25 goals, 25 assists, and 50 points in just 35 games last season, then jumped on the proverbial moving train that was the Flyers in the middle of their playoff push.
The 2025 No. 6 overall pick was a star off rip, scoring four goals, six assists, and 10 points in nine regular season games, then added five more points in 10 playoff games.
"Martone's excellent freshman year and, maybe even more importantly, his strong play in the NHL at the end of the regular season in particular, really sold the league on his status as one of the game's future top power forwards," Wheeler wrote.
"Mikko Rantanen and Jason Robertson, who are both Tier 2 wingers in Player Tiers this year, feel like attainable — if a little lofty — projections for Martone."
Martone isn't quite as dynamic as Rantanen, but his style of play and strengths closely resemble both of the 100-point wingers.
He's not a center, no, but the Carolina Hurricanes just proved that you can win a Stanley Cup without one of the five best centers in the NHL.
If Martone can even approach the heights Rantanen and Robertson have reached in their careers, the Flyers are going to be in a really good spot going forward.
Only Ivar Stenberg, Gavin McKenna, Lane Hutson, Leo Carlsson, Connor Bedard, Matthew Schaefer, and Macklin Celebrini ranked higher on Wheeler's tier list.
The Michkov of it all
Michkov was the Flyers' best player to end the regular season. (Photo: Eric Hartline, Imagn Images)
Somewhat surprisingly, Matvei Michkov, still just 21 years old, is included in the ranking, though he dropped a full tier from 2B to 3B from this time last year.
Wheeler notes that his NHL peers are aligning themselves more with Rick Tocchet's side of this coin: that Michkov will have to iron out the defensive kinks and fitness issues before knighting the Russian phenom as a future star player in the league.
But, again, with all the negativity and publicity around Michkov last year, he still finished the year with 20 goals and 51 points and led the Flyers in scoring after the Olympic break.
"If those [flaws] persist evaluators won't even care if he becomes an 80-point version of that player, because he won't be viewed as a winning player," Wheeler said of Michkov.
It's not to say that hockey people are wrong or fans are wrong, but that is just how people in and around the game see Michkov right now, and Tocchet, as a former player and current coach, is one of those people.
Fortunately, it seems as though Michkov took the 2025-26 season to heart throughout the summer, and the Flyers have recognized his efforts ahead of the start of training camp.
The fruits this ultimately bears still remain to be seen.
The best of the rest
Because Luchanko and Nesbitt (and Maksim Sokolovskii) didn't make the cut, things drop off for the Flyers from here.
The next tier a Flyers prospect appears in is way down in 5B, which is above only 5C on the remainder of the list.
Goalie Egor Zavragin, who is still highly regarded by the Flyers after a trying season the organization does not put on him, clocks in at 5B for Wheeler. A tier-5 goalie is considered an "above-average starter," which is still a very good outcome for the Flyers.
Don't sleep on Denver Barkey heading into the 2026-27 season. (Photo: Eric Hartline, Imagn Images)
Marek Sklenicka, Carson Bjarnason, and Martin Psohlavec still have time to develop and get their names on the radar to make this list, and Dan Vladar, Joseph Woll, and Aleksei Kolosov can buy the above prospects time to become ripe for NHL action.
Ankle-biter forward Denver Barkey complements Martone and Michkov at 5C, making the ranking after being left off last year on the heels of an improbably successful first year playing pro hockey in the Flyers organization.
We can expect Barkey to become a full-time NHLer moving forward.
Most interestingly, and to round out the list, defensemen Oliver Bonk and David Jiricek rank right next to each other at the bottom of the 5C tier, with Wheeler questioning Bonk's true upside as a player and not whether or not he'll become an NHLer.
As for Jiricek, Wheeler, like the Flyers, acknowledges that the talent and tools are there, but the end result has not. The 22-year-old is now playing for his third organization in four years since being drafted in 2022.
"David Jiricek is an AHL player at this point, I don’t see him being on this list," a scout told Wheeler.
Jiricek badly needs to fix his skating, reads, and defending in open space to reach his full potential as an NHL defenseman, and the Flyers will likely want him to unleash his physicality more, too, for a 6-foot-4 body.
That said, the Flyers also know that Jiricek can aid their 32nd-ranked power play, and given that the Czech rearguard is no longer waivers-exempt, Jiricek will probably be given every opportunity to prove himself and make an impact.
The Buffalo Sabres’ 2025-26 season was its best in generations, as they won the Atlantic Division, then beat the Boston Bruins in Round 1 of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Buffalo fell to the Montreal Canadiens in a Round 2 exit, but for the first time in a very long time, there was genuine positive vibes in Sabres Land..
For the second straight season here at TheHockeyNews.com, we're analyzing the Sabres’ Eastern Conference opponents for the second season in a series we call “Know Your Enemy”. And in this file, we’re turning the spotlight on a team that has had nearly as much misery as Buffalo – the Columbus Blue Jackets.
BUFFALO SABRES VS. COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS
NEW BLUE JACKETS PLAYERS: Valeri Nichushkin (LW), Pheonix Copley (G), Ryan Lomberg (LW)
2025-26 SERIES: Sabres 1-1-1, Blue Jackets 2-1-0
2026-27 GAMES AGAINST EACH OTHER: October 1, at Columbus; November 6 at Buffalo; January 8 at Columbus
CAN THE SABRES BEAT THIS TEAM? The Blue Jackets and Sabres kick off their season by playing each other in a showdown in Columbus at the start of October, and in the following three months, they’ll play each other another two times. So the Columbus team that Buffalo plays for the final time in the first week of January could look different by the time next year’s NHL trade deadline arrives – and the same goes for the Sabres.
That said, Columbus’ off-season was unspectacular, and that’s being kind. Veteran winger Nichushkin was acquired from the Colorado Avalanche, and while he’s a solid scorer, he’s not a game-changer, generational player, and that’s what the Blue Jackets don’t have nearly enough of.
And this is why the Sabres have to take care of business when they do take on the Jackets. Columbus is clearly one of the league’s weaker teams, and although they do have up-and-coming youngsters including center Adam Fantilli – as well as superstar defenseman Zach Werenski, at least, for now – the Blue Jackets don’t measure up well on paper against virtually any NHL team.
Columbus is fortunate in that they play in the Metropolitan Division, one of the league’s weaker divisions. But from the Sabres’ perspective, any games that are lost in regulation time to a puny rival is what could be the difference between Buffalo winning or losing home-ice advantage in the post-season.
A strong start is important for any team, Sabres included. A dominant win in Game 1 will set the right tone for Buffalo, and while the Blue Jackets could surprise people and win some games playing feisty hockey, they’re one of the teams the Sabres have to put in their place. And if Buffalo does squander some points in the standings to Columbus, Sabres fans will be rightly frustrated.
Everyone knows the Calgary Flames are rebuilding and have been fortunate enough to select some great prospects like Carson Carels and Zayne Parekh in recent NHL Drafts. However, Scott Wheeler from The Athletic doesn't see any top-tier players in the organization's pipeline; instead believes there are several All-Star, Star, and Support-level talents.
In his latest rankings of the Top 145 NHL Prospects, released on September 3, Wheeler discussed only eight Calgary prospects, with two standing out above the rest.
The All-Star Level Prospects
When Parekh played in the OHL, he performed at a level unseen in decades. He drew comparisons to Bobby Orr as one of the game's most offensively gifted defensemen of his generation. As the ninth overall pick from the 2024 Draft, he has yet to find his groove in the NHL, with just 10 points in 38 games over three seasons. It's been an adjustment, to say the least, for the 20-year-old, who compiled 240 points in just 177 games in the OHL.
Interestingly, Parekh ranks below future defensive partner Carson Carels, whom the Flames just selected sixth overall at the 2026 Draft. Although he didn't put up the same statistics in the WHL as Parekh, he had 111 points in 125 games. Carels was one of the highest-ranked defenders in his draft class, and he happened to be available for the Flames for their first pick.
The Star Level Prospects
In June 2026, the Flames made a deal with the New Jersey Devils to acquire 22-year-old Simon Nemec, who is the second overall pick from the 2022 Draft. Through four NHL seasons, he's scored 16 goals and 49 points in 155 games. Many hope that a change of scenery and a chance to be a top-pairing defenseman will help his development, especially in Calgary, which signed him to a long-term extension.
Meanwhile, the only other possible star in the Flames prospect pipeline is Matvei Gridin, a 20-year-old winger who is projected to be one on the team's top line to begin the 2026-27 season. The former 28th overall pick from the 2024 Draft just finished his first season of professional hockey and scored 16 goals and 50 points over 74 games with the Flames and Calgary Wranglers.
The Supporting Cast Members
Of the prospects Wheeler grouped into the Support category, the Flames find most of their future players. First is center Cole Reschny, a 19-year-old whom Calgary drafted 18th overall in 2025. Right now, he's still playing in the NCAA, where an injury derailed his 2025-26 campaign, and he failed to duplicate the 92 points he scored the previous year.
Next on the list is Hunter Brzustewicz, a 21-year-old defenseman whom many in the C of Red are wondering will ever reach his potential. Since making his professional hockey debut in 2024-25, he's bounced between the Flames and Wranglers, scoring just 52 points in 139 games. Heading into the new season, Brzustewicz will once again begin the year in the AHL, waiting for another call-up.
Given that Calgary is missing a true No. 1 center, Wheeler doesn't believe Cullen Potter, the team's second first-round pick in 2025, is the answer. As a kid who developed through the United States National Development Program, he's still skating in the NCAA and still looking for his first career 20-goal campaign.
Meanwhile, Ethan Wyttenbach, a 19-year-old winger the Flames drafted in the fifth round of the 2025 Draft, is another NCAA prospect with significant upside after back-to-back 20-goal campaigns in the USHL and at Quinnipiac University.
Finally, the very last prospect ranked by Wheeler is 18-year-old Tobias Trejbal. The 6-foot-4 goalie from Czechia came to the Flames as a second-round pick in the 2026 Draft and is committed to the University of Massachusetts this year. During his one season in the USHL, he was 30-9-3 with a .916 SV% and could find his way into the Wranglers' system before the end of the decade.
Do you agree with Wheeler's rankings? Is there someone he missed? Let us know what you think in the comments.
Now that it is September, most of this year's free agents have landed their new contracts. Although this is the case, there are still some remaining unrestricted free agents (UFAs) with September now here.
A former Montreal Canadiens forward is among the UFAs left, as Tanner Pearson is still looking for his new home.
Pearson still being a free agent at this point in the summer comes after he split this past season between the Winnipeg Jets and then the Buffalo Sabres. In 56 games split between the two clubs, he posted seven goals, eight assists, 15 points, 68 hits, and a plus-7 rating.
While Pearson's prime days are over, he could still be a solid pickup for an NHL club that is looking for more forward depth and experience. Due to this, the possibility of the 34-year-old landing a professional tryout (PTO) at least should not be ruled out.
Pearson spent the 2023-24 season with the Canadiens after being acquired from the Vancouver Canucks during the 2023 NHL off-season. In 54 games with the Habs that campaign, he posted five goals, 13 points, and 50 hits. His time with the Canadiens ended after they did not re-sign him that following summer.
