The former Minnesota Wild defenseman announced his retirement from professional hockey on social media, bringing an end to a career that spanned more than a decade and took him through the NHL, AHL and Europe.
Hunt's journey to the NHL was anything but conventional. Undrafted out of Bemidji State University, the Maple Ridge, British Columbia native worked his way through the ECHL and AHL before making his NHL debut with the Edmonton Oilers during the 2013-14 season.
Over parts of 10 NHL seasons, Hunt appeared in 288 regular-season games with the Oilers, St. Louis Blues, Nashville Predators, Vegas Golden Knights, Minnesota Wild, Vancouver Canucks and Colorado Avalanche. He finished his NHL career with 26 goals, 60 assists and 86 points.
Minnesota fans will remember Hunt from his three seasons with the Wild from 2018-21.
After being acquired from the Vegas Golden Knights during the 2018-19 season, Hunt carved out a role as a dependable depth defenseman with an offensive touch. He played 100 games for Minnesota, recording 12 goals and 13 assists for 25 points while quarterbacking the second power-play unit at times.
His best offensive season came in 2019-20 when he set NHL career highs with eight goals, 11 assists and 19 points in 59 games.
Following his stint with the Wild, Hunt spent the 2021-22 season with the Vancouver Canucks before helping the Colorado Avalanche during the 2022-23 campaign. He later continued his career overseas before announcing his retirement.
Although he never became a full-time top-four defenseman, Hunt's perseverance made him one of hockey's better underdog stories. From going undrafted to reaching nearly 300 NHL games, he proved that determination and offensive skill could earn a lengthy career at the highest level.
His retirement closes the book on a professional career defined by resilience, adaptability and an unwavering commitment to chasing the NHL dream.
Among the holes left unaddressed by the Philadelphia Flyers this offseason was defense, where the club added only Simon Benoit at the expense of Emil Andrae. If the Flyers want to take another step in the rebuild, they'll need to do more than that.
Fortunately, a young, potential future top four defenseman can be had via trade, and they needn't look very far to find him.
Elsewhere in the Metropolitan Division, the Carolina Hurricanes have yet to agree to a new contract with restricted free agent defenseman Alexander Nikishin who, according to himself, would like north of $8 million a year on his next deal.
"Earlier, when asked about rumors that he wants $8 million per season on his new deal, the defenseman smiled and said: 'More.'" RG's Daria Tuboltseva wrote in her exclusive interview with Nikishin.
"My agents handle that. I don't push the situation much, they take care of everything themselves. If something concrete comes up, they'll call me. Right now there's nothing concrete about the contract," Nikishin said. "The salary cap keeps growing, and defensemen are getting bigger salaries. You can already feel the difference. I think contracts will keep getting bigger and bigger over time."
By the sounds of it, Nikishin, 24, is backing himself to earn his improved salary and do the Hurricanes, or a team like the Flyers, a favor by taking the money now instead of later.
With the Leo Carlsson offer sheet and trade links to Zach Werenski, it's been well-established that the Flyers are able and willing to spend big money to improve their roster.
Nikishin, with 11 goals and 33 points in his first NHL season, would provide an upgrade already, even while not yet reaching his full potential.
Travis Sanheim and Jamie Drysdale were the only Flyers defensemen to crack 30 points last season, and they were also the only two to have more than five goals (Sanheim had 11).
The young Russian blue liner already has 17 games of Stanley Cup playoff experience, winning it all with the Hurricanes this year while playing in a reduced role, and he's also a former teammate of Matvei Michkov's from their SKA St. Petersburg days in the KHL.
With Nikishin in need of a new contract and the Flyers willing to spend, plus the added element of familiarity, the trade fit between the two sides is obvious.
However, at the same time, other teams are pursuing the 6-foot-3 defender, and the Flyers will have to beat them to the punch if they are serious about making another upgrade this summer.
Recently, it was reported that the St. Louis Blues have interest in trading for Nikishin, and other teams will begin to realize soon, too, that the 24-year-old is worth the chase.
The Blues have enjoyed great success going this kind of route before, landing Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg with offer sheets that pried them out of Edmonton.
If a team like St. Louis is willing to pony up again, even if not necessarily an offer sheet, that might say something about Nikishin.
According to PuckPedia, the Flyers have $14.88 million in cap space remaining and only need to re-sign Nikita Grebenkin, so the decision to trade for and re-sign Nikishin is entirely up to them.
Some of Vancouver’s minor hockey associations are expressing their concern over the Vancouver Canucks’ potential practice facility project.
In a joint statement released on Friday, the Vancouver Angels, Vancouver Thunderbirds, and Vancouver Minor Hockey Association said the following regarding the Canucks’ recent practice facility update of signing an MOU to build at Britannia Ice Rink.
“...We are disappointed by the report that the City of Vancouver and the Vancouver Canucks are exploring building a practice facility that could leverage an existing community rink at Britannia without creating desperately needed new ice capacity.
“The City of Vancouver has not added a net new municipal ice sheet since the 1970s, yet demand for ice time remains exceptionally strong and continues to grow. Minor hockey associations throughout the city are operating at capacity and, in some cases, turning away prospective players because sufficient ice time is not available. The shortage impacts not only minor hockey but also a wide range of community ice users, including figure skating, adult recreation leagues, and other ice sport organizations.”
In the project proposal released on Thursday, the Canucks and City of Vancouver’s plan indicates that, rather than building a brand-new facility itself, the construction process will focus on creating a separate section attached to the pre-existing rink, referred to as the “training venue.”
With this in mind, the statement made by the Vancouver Angels, Vancouver Thunderbirds, and Vancouver Minor Hockey outlines how the idea of a new practice facility complex, one they compare to the Seattle Kraken’s Community Iceplex, could be “a conversation worth having” regarding its benefit to both the team, the city, and the communities being impacted by potential work done at Britannia.
“A partnership involving the Vancouver Canucks, the City of Vancouver, and a private-sector development or operating partner could help expand ice access, manage capital costs, and create a lasting legacy for future generations of Vancouver families,” they state.
The full statement can be found via @vanminorhockey on Instagram.
Dec 21, 2023; Dallas, Texas, USA; A view of the NHL puck and Stars logo and hockey stick and the face-off circle during the game between the Dallas Stars and the Vancouver Canucks at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
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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.
Marcus Johansson is the Webster’s Dictionary definition of a journeyman, having played for six NHL clubs during his 16-year career. After starting in 2010 and spending his first seven seasons in Washington, the 35-year-old has played for New Jersey, Boston, Buffalo (during the COVID-shortened 2019-20 season), Minnesota, Seattle, a return to the Capitals, and then the last four seasons back with the Wild.
Will the Sabres add scoring help between now and the start of training camp?
Johansson’s best offensive years were during his first stint with Washington, where he posted a career-high 58 points (24 goals, 34 assists) in 2016-17, but for the most part, he has settled into a middle-six depth forward who scores in the 30-40 point range. Last season, with the Wild, he compiled 49 points (15 goals, 34 assists), four goals in the playoffs, and played for Sweden at the Milano-Cortina Olympics, yet he had not been re-signed by Minnesota GM Bill Guerin.
There was some thought that the veteran forward was in a holding pattern waiting for the Wild to offer him another one-year deal, but the 35-year-old in early June signed a deal to return home to play with Farjestad, which likely marks the end of his NHL career.
On Sunday night, at 7:00 PM, NHL Network will air its Top 20 Wings Right Now list. Is Montreal Canadiens’ sniper Cole Caufield likely to land on that list? The American goal scorer might have failed to make his national team for the 4 Nations Face-Off and the Olympics, but that was mostly down to the Americans wanting to play a style of game that he wasn’t really suited to.
Caufield finished the last season with 88 points, third amongst all right wingers behind Nikita Kucherov (130 points) and David Pastrnak (100 points). He was also sixth amongst all wingers since Jason Robertson (96 points), Kyle Connor (92 points) and Kirill Kaprizov (89 points), who has a $17 M cap hit, all finished ahead of him.
In goals, Caufield and his 51 lamplighters ruled the roost. No one even came close to him. Kucherov was the closest right winger with 44 goals, and Kaprizov was the top-scoring left winger with 45 goals. In fact, only one forward scored more goals than Caufield, centerman Nathan MacKinnon, who had 53 goals (including eight empty-net goals). Interestingly, Kucherov, who was the second-highest-scoring right winger, had seven empty-netters.
Caufield was also tied in fourth place when it comes to the best differential amongst wingers at plus-29, bested only by Kucherov (plus-44), Brandon Hagel (plus-34), and Artturi Lehkonen (plus-32).
Statistically speaking, Caufield should find his way onto that list, even if he didn’t have the size Team USA was looking for. He’s also a constant threat on the power play, has scored a lot of game-tying or game-winning goals for the Canadiens, and he has a knack for scoring when he is most needed to, at least in the regular season. Furthermore, he’s one of the greatest bang-for-your-buck players in the league with a $7.85 million cap hit. Who do you see making the NHL Network's Top 20?
Last season, Malatesta set a career-high in games played at 57. He scored 10 goals and totaled 18 points, while setting a career-high with 87 PIMs. He was signed to a one-year extension by Columbus last month and will be an RFA once again at the end of 2027.
Super Mario only played two games against the Blue Jackets, one in the 00-01 season, and one in the 02-03 season. He had 167 combined points in those two seasons, and could not muster a single point against Columbus. That's a win!
In those two games he had zero points, was a minus-3, had 6 shots, and played 25:40 per game.
Del Bel Belluz was drafted in 2022, #44 overall, by Columbus, a pick that some considered a steal at the time. Later in 2022, he would sign his entry-level contract with the CBJ. The Mississauga Steelheads of the OHL drafted the Woodbridge, Ontario product, and then, in his final year, he was traded to the Sarnia Sting, also of the OHL.
Fix-Wolansky never got an extended chance to prove he could be an everyday NHL player and was not tendered a contract in 2025. He went on to sign a deal with the New York Rangers. He would never play for the Rangers, but played 72 games for the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack, scoring 31 goals and totaling 55 points.
Broadhurst was traded by Chicago to Columbus on June 30, 2015, along with Brandon Saad and Michael Paliotta, for Artem Anisimov, Jeremy Morin, Corey Tropp, Marko Dano, and Columbus' 4th-round pick in the 2016 NHL Draft. He would only play in a pair of games for the CBJ during the 2017-18 season. Where Broadhurst would excel would be in the AHL for the Cleveland Monsters. He played in 229 games for Cleveland, scoring 48 goals and totaling 132 points. On February 25, 2019, he was traded to the Winnipeg Jets. He would play 2019-20 with the San Diego Gulls, and then leave for Europe. He spent two seasons in Liiga and the last four playing in the KHL. He is signed to play for the Fischtown Pinguins of the DEL in 26-27.
Nash went on to score 41 goals in his 2nd NHL season, securing the Rocket Richard Trophy, which he shared with snipers Jarome Iginla and Ilya Kovalchuk. He was the youngest player in league history to lead the league in goals.
Now, per CBA rules, they have 48 hours to buy out any players by putting them on outright waivers. The rule kicks in 72 hours after their final arbitration hearing, or, in this case, by signing Cole Sillinger and avoiding a hearing. The window will close on Thursday.
Hutchinson spent the 2022-23 season with the Blue Jackets organization. In 16 games with Columbus that campaign, he posted a 2-6-3 record, an .877 save percentage, and a 4.29 goals-against average. This would be his lone season with the Blue Jackets, as he spent his first NHL season with the Detroit Red Wings in 2023-24.
"We've talked about it; it starts with our belief, just what we're capable of doing, and I know those two guys that they have more of themselves as well. Obviously, was super pumped to see Charlie extend for six more years at the start of the summer."
Regarding the defense, Zach Werenski came in with a positive of 99.7%, which puts his total model value at a staggering $18 million per season. Don Waddell better hope Werenski and his camp don't see this model.
Patrik Laine, James van Riemsdyk, and Nick Blankenburg are three former Blue Jackets who are still free agents at this juncture of the off-season.
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Predicting the Colorado Avalanche’s top scorers in 2026-27. [Sports Illustrated]
Former Avalanche goalie Justus Annunen has gone from a trade piece in Colorado to a rising star in Nashville, forcing the hockey world to rethink what his ceiling truly is. [The Hockey News]
News Around the League
Patrick Kane returns to Blackhawks on two-year deal. [Sportsnet]
Sharks And Celebrini agree to five-year, $94M extension at record $18.8M AAV. [TSN]
McDavid: Babcock ‘perfect fit’ for where Oilers are at. [The Score]
How Eric Lindros could have changed Avalanche history. [Sports Illustrated]
Women of Colour Hockey Collective broadens its reach by introducing the game to Jamaican children. [Toronto Star]
Gap remains wide as Senators, Drake Batherson work toward new deal. [Toronto Sun]
McKenna, other top prospects take in ‘fun’ NHLPA Rookie Showcase. [NHL]
Decision on Russian participation for the 2026-2027 IIHF Championship season made following event-by-event review. [IIHF]
The Toronto Maple Leafs are going into the 2026-27 NHL season with an entirely new coaching staff, with Jim Hiller steering the ship from behind the bench.
It was a much-needed shakeup after the Maple Leafs missed the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since that streak started in 2016-17. With that change, particularly the hire of Hiller, turned heads.
In the process of searching for a new bench boss, Toronto had reported links to the likes of Peter Laviolette, Patrick Roy, Jay Woodcroft, Dallas Eakins, and even Joe Pavelski. But there weren't many hints about Hiller returning to the Maple Leafs organization for a second stint, this time as the 41st head coach in the franchise's history, instead of an assistant, as he was from 2015-16 to 2018-19 with Toronto.
Part of the reason for that is how Hiller's tenure with the Los Angeles Kings played out. Under Hiller, the Kings were a very mediocre team offensively at their best. At their worst, they were a team that kept a tight, defensive system but struggled mightily to score goals, which ultimately led to his firing on March 1.
Therefore, Hiller is certainly going into this coming season with a chip on his shoulder and something to prove.
Indeed, his system with Los Angeles led to average results and dull hockey, but that was a different team. The Kings didn't have superstar offensive talents such as Auston Matthews and William Nylander. Not to mention threats like John Tavares, Matthew Knies, Gavin McKenna, and others.
Hiller will have the opportunity to show that he's not just a coach who has his team sit back and defend. In fact, when he was an assistant in Toronto, he was in charge of the team's power play, meaning he can incorporate an attacking approach into his team's play.
His time with the Kings was his only stint as a head coach in the NHL. With that, there isn't much of a successful sample size to say that Hiller is a top coach in the league and capable of guiding the Leafs back to the playoffs. After all, he finished 24th in TheHockeyNews.com's NHL head coach ranking.
But if he's going to rewrite that narrative, he'll have to do it under some real pressure, not just because of where the Maple Leafs stand based on failure from this past year, but also because of the market.
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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.
So, this time around, making a top-20 list was challenging. However, 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. So, this excludes names such as Ben Kindel, Filip Hallander, Oliver Okuliar, and Alexander Alexeyev.
To kick off our 2026 Top-20 Penguins' Prospects list, we will first reveal the names of those who just missed the cut.
Honorable mentions
C Atley Calvert
Leaving the 22-year-old undrafted center off this list was a very, very tough call. After putting together two very impressive WHL campaigns with the Moose Jaw Warriors from 2022-24, Calvert joined the organization on an ATO and was eventually signed to an AHL contract.
His performance in the ECHL with the Wheeling Nailers - former affiliate of the Penguins - during the 2024-25 season included 13 goals and 36 points in 38 games, and it earned him an AHL promotion, where he has remained ever since. In 96 games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (WBS), Calvert has 25 goals and 52 points.
He was rewarded a precious contract slot when the Penguins inked him to a two-year, entry-level contract earlier this summer. They believe in his talent and his growth and that he will continue to play a pivotal role in WBS’s top-six.
RW Melvin Fernstrom
Fernstrom, 20, had a lot going for him heading into the 2025-26 season. He had just won Rookie of the Year for the Swedish Hockey League the season prior, when he put up eight goals and 17 points in 48 games playing against men.
However, he took quite the step back last season.
After recording just three goals and four points in 36 SHL games, Orebro HK was set to loan him to a lower league until the Penguins elected to bring Fernstrom back to North America from his loan. He did have a nice showing for WBS in the regular season, posting two goals and eight points in 14 games, before an injury ended his season. So, there is some reason for optimism heading into the 2026-27 season.
However, there is still a lot of work to be done in the skating department for Fernstrom, and he has to develop more consistency. A strong year could land him back on the top-20 list next year and on track to help the NHL club at some point.
A product of the University of North Dakota, Livanavage signed a two-year entry-level contract last season to appear in one NHL game, so he will be entering the second year of his deal.
He nearly cracked the list because of the offensive upside. He had five goals and 25 points in 39 games for North Dakota last season, and he is a fleet-footed blueliner in transition as well as a power play specialist. If he can take a step this season, he may even see NHL time.
The Penguins are pretty thin at left defense as is, and they’re even more shallow in their prospect pool at the position. Livanavage is one of those wild cards who could pan out - but he definitely needs to refine the defensive side of his game first.
LW Pierce Mbuyi
Mbuyi is probably the name here that has the highest chances of being a riser by this time next year.
The 18-year-old was selected in the third round (86th overall) by the Penguins in this year’s draft after posting 32 goals and 75 points in 68 games for the OHL’s Owen Sound Attack last season. He may be a bit undersized at 5-foot-11, 160 pounds, but his tenacity, speed, forechecking, lively shot, and ability to expose the soft areas of the ice should bode well for his continued development.
He has committed to go back to Owen Sound for the 2026-27 season as the team’s captain, and he will then head to Penn State University for the 2027-27 campaign. If Mbuyi’s development goes on the track the Penguins think it will, he will easily crack the top-20 next season and could end up being a third-round steal for them.
At this point, it's no secret that the Philadelphia Flyers locker room is full of interesting characters, and that makes it no surprise that Porter Martone meshes with his new group of NHL teammates just fine.
Despite his young age, Martone, 19, has already served as captain for his country at the international junior level, and his personality bleeds through on and off the ice.
The 2025 No. 6 overall pick is a strong, effective communicator who conducts himself well, likes to talk, and knows what to say and how to say it.
So, naturally, Martone had a great story to tell about the lowlight of his hockey career, spilling the beans to ESPN's Emily Kaplan at the NHLPA Rookie Showcase in Chicago this past week.
"My draft year, we're in the OHL Cup Finals. It's like the biggest game of my life at that point. This is like the Stanley Cup for me at this age. And I think we were losing 2-1. Our D-man broke a stick, and as he skated back, they got a breakaway," Martone explained to Kaplan.
"So I tried to huck my stick from the bench to give to our defenseman and it lands in the other guy's skates and trips him, and they kicked me out of the game. I played five shifts and I don't know why I did it. I remember I was bawling my eyes out because it's like the biggest day of my life. And we ended up losing too, so it kind of made it worse."
A for effort for Martone, and to be fair to him, it's not like we don't still see experienced NHL players throw sticks and other equipment at players on breakaways to give away penalty shots and automatically awarded goals.
Draft classmate Michael Misa dominated in the game Martone was referencing, scoring three goals and five points to break Connor McDavid's previous record of 19 points with his 20 in seven games.
Martone had seven goals and 15 points of his own to that point, including a tally in the game, but he was, as described in full detail and glory, ejected in the second period.
Four years later, now in the NHL with the Flyers with 10 games of Stanley Cup playoff experience under his belt, it's safe to say that Martone can leave this one in the past.
The Buffalo Sabres could go a number of different ways as the NHL is in the midst of trade season following the NHL Draft and the opening of free agency on July 1. With the departure of winger Alex Tuch and defenseman Bowen Byram, GM Jarmo Kekalainen is expected to seek out offensive reinforcements to make up for the 44 goals lost by their departures.
We are continuing to look at potential options for the Sabres, now that veteran Patrick Kane has returned with Chicago. Some of the possibilities are not going to match Tuch’s stats, but any additions could provide some relief to the pressure that youngsters Konsta Helenius, Jiri Kulich, or Noah Ostlund will be under to make up the deficit.
Kekalainen ideally is looking for someone who could make up as much of the 60-to-70 point production that he lost with Tuch, or someone who can fill the leadership gap and/or add some snarl and sandpaper to the middle-six.
Will the Sabres add scoring help before the start of training camp?
A player who could be available for next to nothing in a trade is veteran winger Frank Vatrano. A Massachusetts native and product of the US National Development Program, the undrafted college free agent signed with Boston in 2015, but did not achieve any NHL success in three years with the Bruins and only blossomed after being traded to Florida in 2018.
The 32-year-old has been remarkably consistent until last season, with seasons of 24, 16, and 18 goals with the Panthers, 18 with FLA and the NY Rangers in 2022, and 22, 37, and 21 goals with the Ducks. Vatrano’s scoring success ended last season, due mostly to a shoulder injury in late December that caused him to drop to five goals in 50 games.
As with Alex Killorn and Chris Kreider, Vatrano may be on the trade block because the Ducks are looking to shed salary to sign RFA winger Cutter Gauthier after Anaheim matched the offer sheet to Leo Carlsson. Both Killorn and Kreider are 35 or older and have a cap hit in excess of $6 million, but they are each entering the final year of their contracts.
Vatrano is younger, is more likely to bounce back from a bad season now that he is healthy, and his cap hit is $4.57 million, but he is signed through 2027-28. Another factor for the Sabres might be the salary deferral of $9 million ($3 million for each year of his three-year, $18 million contract extension), that is paid out at $900,000 annually for 10 years starting in 2035.
That factor could limit the cost to acquire the veteran winger to nearly nothing, but it might rule out the Sabres interest in Vatrano based on Buffalo’s fiscally conservative nature.
The 2025-26 New York Islanders season did not go the way many hoped, as they faded down the stretch and ultimately missed the playoffs.
Still, reasons for positivity emerged.
Matthew Schaefer engraved himself as a total franchise cornerstone, a generational defenseman for the Islanders. Cal Ritchie had an excellent second half of the season, while the youth push continued in earnest.
Ilya Sorokin, for his part, was a Vezina Finalist and had an outstanding season, though his performance (along with the entire team's), tapered down the stretch.
"There's not much good news, of course," Sorokin said. "Now, with the benefit of hindsight, it's probably hard to say it was a blow. But we need to change something in our training system and learn from it. I'm sure both the coaching staff and the players understand this. Our fans have much higher expectations of the squad."
Sorokin's likely talking of ex-Head Coach's Patrick Roy's system, one that focused on maximizing offense but often led to dangerous rush chances against constantly.
The Islanders' superstar netminder shouldered some of the blame, too.
"Ultimately, it was those one or two saves that could have given us extra points and put us in the playoffs," Sorokin said. "We can say whatever we want now, but the main thing is to figure out why it didn't happen.
"That's what summer is for—work. I think at some point I was a bit lacking in physicality. Towards the end of the season, I started playing practically every game in a row, and perhaps I was no longer feeling fresh."
Sorokin played the vast majority of games down the stretch, with David Rittich struggling and Semyon Varlamov unable to play, the Islanders leaned hard into Sorokin.
As Sorokin said, it's a long summer. The Islanders can and have work to improve, along with Sorokin.
Now that NHL free agency started one month ago, most of this year's top UFAs have landed their new contracts.
Although this is the case, there are still some interesting players available for the taking on the free agent market. When looking at who is left, one player whom the Canadiens should consider taking a chance on is forward Vladimir Tarasenko.
With the Canadiens needing another skilled winger on their roster, Tarasenko could be worth taking a gamble on with a one-year contract. While the 34-year-old forward is not the same dominant star he was during his prime, he would still have the potential to provide the Canadiens with more offensive production if signed.
Tarasenko showed last season with the Minnesota Wild that he is still capable of producing offense. In 75 games with the Wild during the 2025-26 campaign, he posted 23 goals, 24 assists, and 47 points. With numbers like these, he could be a nice addition for the Canadiens' top nine if signed.
Tarasenko would not provide the Canadiens with a long-term answer for their top six but could be a very solid player for them to bring in for next season. This is especially so when noting that he has a ton of playoff experience and has won the Stanley Cup twice in his career.
It will be interesting to see if the Canadiens end up making a push for Tarasenko this summer from here, but there could be a good match here.
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.
37. Ashton Schultz - Center (Chicago/Sioux City - USHL)
The Sabres continued their practice in the 2025 NHL Draft of selecting players with longer development windows, since they did not have to sign them within two years. That window has altered slightly with the new Collective Bargaining Agreement kicking, but GM Jarmo Kkealainen and his scouting staff will have plenty of time to evaluate young center Ashton Schultz, who was selected in the sixth round (167th overall) in the first decentralized draft in Los Angeles.
The Victoria, MN native is a product of the vaunted Minnesota high school system and played 11 games in the USHL for Sioux Falls as a 17-year-old, while also scoring 57 points in 28 games for Minnetonka HS. In 2024-25, he scored 39 points (14 goals, 25 assists) in 57 games for the Chicago Steel, and last season, he split time between Chicago and Sioux City, posting 42 points (17 goals, 25 assists) in 49 games.
The 19-year-old is committed to play for the University of North Dakota this fall. The 5’11”, 181 lb. center is described by Elite Prospects as someone who ”always gives his teammates an option, whether that’s offensively, defensively, or along the walls. Sturdy inside contact with play-killing skills, he breaks up the opposition’s cycle, diffuses their rushes, and retrieves pucks at top rates.”
We are now officially just one month away from training camp, and the Philadelphia Flyers, for all intents and purposes, look to be done adding to their roster for now. That said, injuries always happen, and internal competition is never a bad thing.
Free agency opened a month ago, but the Flyers overall did very little, signing veteran fourth-liner Noel Acciari and a slew of AHL players, headlined by journeyman Zach Aston-Reese and former first-round pick Nolan Foote.
With their overall lack of additions, the Flyers figure to be one of the more active teams around the NHL with PTO signings ahead of training camp.
No. 3: Kevin Hayes, C/LW
I know what you're thinking, and maybe this isn't possible after the whole Cutter Gauthier debacle with former head coach John Tortorella, but Kevin Hayes is a serviceable depth option as an offense-first, top-nine forward.
Hayes, 34, is in the twilight years of his NHL career, and he is no longer attached to the albatross $7.142 million cap hit that helped accelerate his previous departure from the Flyers three years ago.
Unsuccessful stints with the St. Louis Blues and Pittsburgh Penguins leave Hayes a free agent, but advanced data shows a player who is still effective relative to his role when given a chance.
Hayes flamed out with the Penguins, but still played some decent hockey in Pittsburgh. (JFresh Hockey)
If there's no bad blood between the veteran forward and the Flyers, there could be a fit here, particularly in the event of an injury.
It's worth noting, too, that Hayes scored 13 points in 19 games the last time the Flyers made the playoffs before this past year--2019-20--and there is an element of familiarity with a number of current Flyers players.
Hayes scored four goals, four assists, and eight points in 28 games with the Penguins last year.
No. 2: Luke Glendening, C/RW
Continuing with the theme of center and forward depth, Luke Glendening has seemingly been replaced by Acciari, who joined the Flyers on a two-year pact at the start of free agency last month.
Still, the Flyers were big fans of the 37-year-old, the versatility he brought, and the fire he played with in his short time in Philadelphia.
Down the stretch and in the playoffs, Glendening, who was claimed on waivers from the New Jersey Devils, emerged as an integral piece on the Flyers' fourth line next to Sean Couturier, especially after Nikita Grebenkin suffered what ended up being a season-ending injury.
Glendening, often used as a faceoff and matchup specialist, scored two goals, three assists, and five points in 18 regular season games with the Flyers, posting a +4 rating and winning 57.2% of his draws.
In 10 playoff games, Glendening scored one goal and was a +3, but won only 48.7% of his faceoffs.
If the formerly undrafted veteran remains unsigned as training camp draws closer, and wants to continue his NHL career, a reunion with the Flyers on a PTO basis makes perfect sense for both sides given the fit.
No. 1: John Klingberg, RHD
One thing the Flyers made clear heading into the offseason was their desire to add to and upgrade the defense.
To this point, though, they haven't really done that.
Left-shot bruiser Simon Benoit was brought on in the Joseph Woll trade, replacing a superior puck-mover in the younger Emil Andrae, and that was it.
Talented trade deadline addition David Jiricek is poised to take on a bigger role and have a chance at finally establishing himself as an NHL regular, but the Flyers have done little to insure themselves in the event that this doesn't happen.
Top prospect Oliver Bonk is even less experienced at the NHL level, and there are no guarantees either youngster can run a competent power play at this level.
That's where John Klingberg comes in.
Klingberg, 33, was once one of the NHL's premier offensive defensemen, but injuries contributed to a rapid decline at both ends of the ice.
After extensive time off the ice due to surgeries and rehab, Klingberg played 56 games for the San Jose Sharks last season, scoring 10 goals, 17 assists, and 27 points, including five goals and nine points on the power play.
This would have played Klingberg second to only Travis Sanheim in goals among Flyers defensemen, and second in points behind Sanheim and Jamie Drysdale.
Additionally, the Flyers, as a team, had only three power play goals from defensemen: one each from Sanheim, Drysdale, and Cam York.
While Klingberg ranked at or near the bottom in many qualifying metrics among the 30 defensemen who played at least 165 minutes on the power play last season, he did, however, rank eighth in scoring chances per 60 minutes, according to Natural Stat Trick.
It's unlikely Klingberg is the answer for the Flyers' power play at this stage in his career, and he may not end up being an upgrade at all, but the Flyers could do worse than to give out a PTO and see if there's anything left in the tank worth taking a chance on.
