Now that we are a week into NHL free agency, a lot of this year's top unrestricted free agents (UFAs) have found their new homes. While this is the case, there are some interesting UFAs still on the market who the Montreal Canadiens could consider targeting.
One specific UFA who could make sense for the Canadiens to bring in on a short-term deal is forward Michael Bunting.
The Canadiens could use another top-nine winger on their roster. Bunting would be an interesting player for them to bring in, as he is capable of providing decent secondary offensive production to go along with some bite.
In 74 games during this past season split between the Nashville Predators and Dallas Stars, Bunting posted 14 goals and 33 points. This was after he had 19 goals, 38 points, and 68 penalty minutes in 76 games during the 2024-25 season. He also had 55 points in 81 games during the 2023-24 campaign, so he could be a solid pickup for the Canadiens.
If the Canadiens signed Bunting, he could be a good fit on their third line. However, he also would be capable of moving up and down the lineup because of his versatility and ability to play both wings.
Overall, on a one-year prove-it deal, Bunting could be worth taking a chance on. From 2021-22 to 2024-25, he scored at least 19 goals each season.
Many of this year's most notable UFAs have signed their new contracts now that it has been a week since NHL free agency started. Yet, there are still a decent number of players who have yet to land deals at this point in the summer.
A good chunk of them just so happen to be former Pittsburgh Penguins players.
Anthony Mantha, Michael Bunting, Matt Grzelcyk, Reilly Smith, and Danton Heinen are some of the former Penguins without deals at this stage of the off-season.
In Mantha's case, it is likely that he is waiting to find the right deal. He has set himself up for a nice raise, as he posted career highs with 33 goals, 31 assists, and 64 points last season with the Penguins.
With Bunting being a gritty forward who can produce decent offense, he should be able to land his next contract soon. The 30-year-old forward posted 14 goals and 33 points in 74 games last season split between the Nashville Predators and Dallas Stars. He appeared in 79 games over two seasons with the Penguins from 2023-24 to 2024-25, posting 20 goals and 48 points.
Grzelcyk was a great fit on the Penguins' blueline during his lone season with the team in 2024-25. In 82 games, he set career highs with 39 assists and 40 points. He cooled off last season, as he posted 12 assists in 69 games with the Chicago Blackhawks. However, his experience could lead to him landing another NHL contract this summer.
Smith spent the 2023-24 season with the Penguins, recording 13 goals and 40 points in 76 games. The veteran winger saw a dip in offensive production last season with the Vegas Golden Knights, as he posted 26 points in 69 games. He could land a one-year deal with a team if they feel he can bounce back.
As for Heinen, he spent four seasons over two stints with the Penguins. He played in 13 games last season with Pittsburgh before being traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets, where he had a goal and an assist. He followed that up by recording 10 points in 33 games with Columbus. Teams looking for help in their bottom six could consider taking a flier on the 10-year veteran.
Apr 13, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Blackhawks center Connor Bedard (98) looks to pass the puck against the Buffalo Sabres during the first period at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images
Kamil Krzaczynski/Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images
CHICAGO — Chicago Blackhawks center Connor Bedard will miss the start of the season after he had surgery on his left shoulder.
Team physician Michael Terry said Bedard is expected “to make a full recovery in an approximate timeline of four months.” The NHL hasn’t announced its regular-season schedule, but the Blackhawks played their first game last season on Oct. 7.
Bedard, who turns 21 on July 17, got hurt while skating with a group of NHL players in his hometown of Vancouver. It’s a major blow for a Blackhawks team trying to emerge from a painful rebuilding process.
Bedard set career highs with 30 goals and 45 assists in 69 games in his third NHL season. He missed 12 games after he hurt his right shoulder on a draw during a 3-2 loss at St. Louis on Dec. 12.
“He’s so important to our team,” general manager Kyle Davidson said in April. “He took such a big step forward this year in every facet.”
Bedard is a restricted free agent, and it remains to be seen if the injury has any effect on the negotiations for his next contract. He missed nearly six weeks of his rookie season with a broken jaw.
Chicago went 29-39-14 last season, an 11-point improvement on the previous season and still nowhere near playoff contention. It has finished No. 31 in the NHL each of the past three years.
The Blackhawks haven’t made a postseason appearance since the NHL used an expanded playoff format after the 2020 season was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bedard has been the centerpiece of the team since he was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft. He made his anticipated NHL debut that October and won the Calder Trophy as the league’s rookie of the year. He had 23 goals and 44 assists while appearing in all 82 games in his second season.
Chicago Blackhawks star Connor Bedard had surgery on his left shoulder on Wednesday, July 8, and will be out for four months, the team announced.
Video last week showed Bedard leaving the ice grabbing his shoulder after he was hurt while practicing with other players in Vancouver.
The four-month timeline will keep Bedard out of the lineup until early November. The starting date for the 2026-27 season won't be announced until next week, but he will likely miss a month or more.
Bedard, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2023 draft, is a restricted free agent and will need a new contract before the start of the 2026-27 NHL season.
I have video of Connor Bedard leaving practice today with a left shoulder injury, as first reported by @RyanmcgregorCHI. You can hear him in severe pain as he leaves the ice: pic.twitter.com/MySM1UwLht
This is the third major injury of Bedard's young career.
The 20-year-old injured his right shoulder last season during a last-second faceoff on Dec. 12 and missed 12 games before returning. He also missed another game that season with injury.
As a rookie, Bedard suffered a broken jaw during the 2023-24 season and missed 14 games.
What does Connor Bedard injury mean for the Blackhawks?
The Blackhawks are 8-17-2 over three seasons when Bedard is out of the lineup, so him missing the first month is not a good sign for a team that finished second to last in the league last season. A slow start would be costly in the strong Central Division.
Bedard had 44 points in 31 games before last season's injury and had four points in the first eight games of his return before his production began picking up.
His 75 points were more than 35% of the Blackhawks' 210 goals.
Frank Nazar was the No. 2 center last season, so he could move up. The Blackhawks will also have Anton Frondell, the 2025 No. 3 overall pick, for a full season.
When does the 2026-27 NHL season begin?
The full schedule for the 2026-27 NHL season will be announced on July 16. The season typically begins in early October but could move earlier because the league is switching to an 84-game schedule.
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On Wednesday, GM Alexander Steen announced that the St. Louis Blues have hired Joey Hishon as an organizational skills coach.
The 34-year-old has been working with the OHL’s Owen Sound Attack since retiring from professional hockey in 2017-18. With the Attack, Hishon began as a scout and skills coach before being promoted to assistant GM and assistant coach midway through his first season with the club.
He held that role for the next three seasons. Hishon has not had a recorded role in hockey since 2022, but will be joining the Blues for the 2026-27 season. According to the Blues press release, Hishon most recently served as a private skills coach for NHL players, offering individualized development programs focused on all aspects of the game.
Before entering the coaching world, Hishon was a former 17th overall pick of the Colorado Avalanche in 2010. Things didn’t pan out too great for Hishon in the NHL, as he played just 13 career games, all of which came in the 2014-15 season. In those 13 games, Hishon scored just one goal and two points.
Most of his career was spent in the AHL, but the Stratford, Ont., native wasn’t potent offensively there either, mustering 41 goals and 109 points in 141 career games. Following his North American career, Hishon spent two seasons in Europe, one in Russia and the other in Sweden, but his production never improved.
Despite struggling after being a highly touted prospect, Hishon has found his path in the coaching world and has moved up the ladder impressively.
As an organizational skills coach, Hishon will work with the Blues’ development staff and players throughout the organization, with a primary focus on the NHL roster.
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On Wednesday morning, the San Jose Sharks announced that they had reached an agreement with former New York Rangers defenseman Libor Hajek on a one-year, two-way deal.
Hajek, who had spent the past three seasons back in his native Czechia, last played an NHL game for the Rangers during the 2022-23 season. The 28-year-old defenseman has had considerable success since returning to the Czech Extraliga as he led the league in game-winning goals by a defenseman during the 2023-24 season, led the league in postseason plus/minus during the 2024-25 campaign, and then won the Extraliga Championship with HC Dynamo Pardubice during the 2025-26 season.
Over the summer, Hajek also represented Czechia at the IIHF World Championship, failing to record a point in eight games, but finishing the tournament as a +3.
When Hajek signed with Dynamo Pardubice, the contract was reportedly set to run through 2028, but it appears he either had an NHL out-clause in his deal or the Sharks opted to buy him out of his contract.
During his NHL career with the Rangers, Hajek appeared in 110 games, scoring four goals and 12 points in the process. He also registered 40 penalties and was a -9.
MARYLAND HEIGHTS, Mo. -- For those that are familiar with the sports scene in St. Louis and the landscape of baseball, the Cardinals and Busch Stadium are pillars of the sports landscape.
For one St. Louis Blues prospect who got to witness the scene for the first time, it was an eventful experience, and one he won't soon forget.
Dmitry Buchelnikov, acquired from the Detroit Red Wings in the Match 6 trade as part of the Justin Faulk deal, and fellow prospects -- as part of their experience of being in St. Louis -- took in the experience of baseball for the first time and was amazed.
"It was a great experience for being in baseball stadium," the 22-year-old said. "I've never been before. We were catching; never did that before. And what is that, like swinging (a bat)? This is an amazing time spending here. Then a little soccer. We were doing penalties with MLS goalies. I scored, yeah, 100 percent! I really liked this."
Yes, there was a visit to the facilities of St. Louis City SC and Energizer Park. Soccer is more familiar in Russia than baseball, if at all, but it was an opportunity for the second-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft to soak in the experience of even a glimmer of life in the NHL.
It was Buchelnikov's first in-person experience with the organization that took a liking to him after being traded, a trade that didn't surprise him, and a trade he welcomed.
"No, not really," Buchelnikov said. "They just call me that I got traded. I told them, 'Thank you for everything.' But this is a new (chapter) for me.
"It was like a good feeling, the same when you were drafted. You just have an opportunity to be here. This is amazing. This is for what you want to be. This is why the people here believe in you."
It was a key reason why the Nizhny Tagil, Russia native felt it was important to come to North America and spend a few days with his new NHL organization, to get to know the city and a new fan base that will be pulling for him.
"No, I just know about this team before. It's kind of a cool moment for me," Buchelnikov said. "I'm just switching (teams) and I'm here and at development camp. It's been amazing, my first time here. I like the city, I like what we (did) here for this week. Fun time."
The 5-foot-10, 173-pound left wing, who has played the three seasons in the KHL after a 10-game stint there as a 19-year-old in 2022-23 with SKA St. Petersburg. Last year was a bit tumultuous after spending three months from Nov-Feb. rehabbing a surgically-repaired shoulder that limited him to 44 games with CSKA Moskva (25 points; 14 goals, 11 assists) plus another 10 games competing for the Gagarin Cup.
"It was a really good year. Yeah, I had the injury in the mid-season," Buchelnikov said. "I spend like three months for doing my rehab. I played 10 games before playoffs started and it's good having that new experience for me. I just played first time in playoffs in my adult career. Before I just played in juniors league or minor league. It was a really good experience for me and for what I need to work (on) and what I need to do."
And make no mistake, Buchelnikov said his aspiration is to play in the NHL, and he fully understands there are areas of his game that need to meet the standards before subjecting himself to what he terms "the best league in the world."
"Be more physical," he said. "That's probably first because this is a tough league. You need to be ready every time. Also thinking more quick. This is why they call (the NHL) the best league in the world. I just need to be ready for that."
And playing in another season in the KHL best suits him for this, he feels, because the KHL competition is top notch.
"Probably yes. This is the kind of league where you have guys that can give you that kind of experience and opportunity for being better," Buchelnikov said. "I like this league. My team was believing in me, giving me ice time, so yeah. I like it."
Buchelnikov, who has 108 points (42 goals, 66 assists) the past three seasons, signed on for one more year with CSKA; he didn't want to say without having those discussions with the Blues what his future beyond the upcoming season would be, but he sure sounded like someone committed to coming to North America, a kid that had a dream of playing in the NHL that now wants to make that a reality.
"I just don't know what I want to say for that. I have a contract in Russia," Buchelnikov said. "This is like when I was a kid, the dream to play in the NHL. This needs to be goal, not to be (just) a dream right now because you (feel) you have the skill, you have the potential. You need to work with that and be better every day.
"This team believes in me. It's a great opportunity for me. I have one more year in Russia. I need to spend (that) time to be better, more physical. I need to work for that."
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The Toronto Maple Leafs revealed their pre-season schedule ahead of the 2026-27 NHL season on Wednesday. With the new CBA, NHL pre-seasons will be much shorter than it has been in the past, and that's what the Maple Leafs get here.
Toronto will play four pre-season games within two separate days in the coming campaign, two of which will be at Scotiabank Arena on home ice.
Pre-season begins on Sept. 19 with two split-squad games against the Montreal Canadiens. The second day of the Maple Leafs' pre-season will feature the Ottawa Senators, which will also include two split-squad games on Sept. 23.
That's in contrast to this past year, when the Maple Leafs played six pre-season games, two each against the Senators, Canadiens and Detroit Red Wings.
This marks the sixth straight pre-season in which Toronto faces its neighboring rivals in Montreal and Ottawa in a campaign. That streak was reset when the 2020-21 COVID-19-affected season didn't include a pre-season.
This pre-season will be the first real look at what the new Maple Leafs will look like. The new front office, new coaching staff, and several new players.
The 2026-27 regular-season schedule is yet to be announced. However, it's been revealed that the opening night matchups will be unveiled on July 15, followed by the full schedule release on July 16.
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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.
Over the next few weeks, we will continue to look at potential options for the Sabres. 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 would like to replace the 60-to-70 point production that he lost with Tuch, and another possibility is someone the former Columbus GM is quite familiar with and that is Blue Jackets winger Kirill Marchenko. The 25-year-old was a 2018 second round pick who spent three seasons with SKA St. Petersburg before coming to North America in 2022.
In four NHL seasons, has exceeded the 20-goal mark each year, with a career-high 31 goals in 2024-25. Marchenko has one year remaining on a three-year bridge deal at a $3.85 million AAV and has one more year before becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2027. Similar to the report that Norris Trophy winner Zach Werenski would not sign a long term extension with Columbus, the big Russian winger indicated he would not be staying with the Blue Jackets past the remaining two years of control.
Zach Benson signs contract extension with the Sabres
Columbus GM Don Waddell was able to quiet the heated trade chatter regarding Werenski, but there still appears to be some talk about Marchenko, with teams like Montreal looking for top-six scoring help. The Sabres could be a viable option for the winger, since he does not have any no-trade protection and Kekalainen has a number of NHL ready assets with years of control that Waddell would be looking for in return.
There may be no haste on the part of the Blue Jackets, since they have control of Marchenko for two years, but the Sabres need to add a scorer to replace as much of Tuch’s production as possible might make them willing to move a promising youngster like Noah Ostlund in a trade that Waddell cannot turn down. The fact that Marchenko would not be a one-year rental makes him more valuable to any interested team, and given the Sabres hope of building on their Atlantic Division title and playoff run last season, they may be willing to pay the price that Columbus is looking for.
The New York Islanders' summer business has churned to a halt, as most teams start to breathe for a few months.
The Islanders, as expected, did not undergo any major surgery. They did lose longtime captain and franchise stalwart Anders Lee to free agency, where Lee signed with the Utah Mammoth.
The #Isles are making #NHL history by becoming the first team to let fans design an official jersey.
One fan's creation will become the club's 2027-28 Third Jersey.
The Islanders signed Matias Maccelli to a one-year, $2.25 million deal. Depth one-year signings in Matthew Kessel ($850,000) and Vitek Vanecek ($1 million) made up the rest of New York's business on July 1.
With all the dust settled, the Islanders currently have a team cap hit of $101,002,083 million. The new cap ceiling sits at $104,000,000, meaning the Islanders have $2,997,917 in cap space remaining.
However, that cap number is based on the Islanders carrying three goalies and 20 skaters, with Vanecek on the books.
In reality, Vanecek likely begins in Hamilton, with his entire hit getting buried.
That one change gives the Islanders just under $4 million in cap space.
With that type of money, they have plenty of room if they choose to offer a one-year deal to any of the remaining free agents.
If they make no other changes, the Islanders could carry one of Isaiah George ($913k cap hit), Victor Eklund ($974k cap hit), Mitchell Chaffee ($850k cap hit), or Liam Foudy ($850k cap hit).
That gives additional wiggle room, even if only in a small amount.
The Islanders can save that space for Matthew Schaefer's likely $3.5 million in bonuses for 2026-27.
Next summer, the Islanders will begin with over $40 million in cap space before any trades or extensions for Simon Holmstrom and Emil Heineman.
The entire setup for this summer is about flexibility, and that's exactly what the Islanders have.
With two days to go until a final resolution, the Philadelphia Flyers officially have the last remaining active offer sheet in the NHL with Leo Carlsson.
On Wednesday, ahead of their 5 p.m. deadline, the Utah Mammoth matched the one-year, $4.775 million offer sheet tendered to forward Barrett Hayton by the New Jersey Devils, setting some precedent for the Flyers and Anaheim Ducks.
Hayton, 26, is eligible to sign a contract extension on Jan. 1, but cannot be traded for one calendar year, and like Carlsson, there is little logic being followed by the matching team.
Hayton played bottom-six minutes for Utah last year and agreed to sign with the Devils by taking them up on the offer sheet, so by matching, the Mammoth pass up on a second-round pick for a player who tried to leave, won't play significant minutes, and could leave for nothing as an unrestricted free agent this time next year.
The Ducks have until 5 p.m. Friday to match the Flyers' eye-watering five-year, $90 million ($18 million AAV) offer sheet for Carlsson, and if they don't, they will receive four first-round picks from the Flyers.
Like Hayton, Carlsson provisionally agreed to leave his team, and the Flyers can offer Carlsson much more from a hockey perspective than the Ducks as currently constructed.
And should the Ducks match the Flyers' Carlsson offer sheet, they will have to do major roster surgery to become cap-compliant, with an already terrible defense, a shallow forward group, and a number of veteran forwards with prohibitive no-trade lists that greatly limit the potential suitors they'll have on the trade block.
But, with Hayton, the Mammoth, and the Devils all square without much fanfare, all eyes around the NHL now turn to the Flyers and Ducks.
The Flyers have entered uncharted territory with their bold move, and the final outcome, one way or another, will send shockwaves through the NHL in short order.
The Devils made the one-year, $4.775 million offer sheet to Hayton on July 1 after the Mammoth had announced it had traded for Vincent Trocheck and signed Anders Lee to a three-year deal with a $5.4 million cap hit. If Utah hadn't matched, the Devils would have given the Mammoth a second-round pick.
The Mammoth have $4.5 million left in cap space after the move. The only complication with matching is Utah can't trade Hayton for a year, and that takes him to unrestricted free agency.
But Utah indicated Hayton is a key part of its plans.
"Barrett is a key piece of our team and important to what we are building here in Utah," Mammoth general manager Bill Armstrong said in a statement. "He’s strong in the faceoff circle, plays both sides of the puck and can play with anyone in our forward group. We are grateful to be able to count on Barrett in our lineup next season."
Here's more to know about the Mammoth matching the offer sheet:
"I’m fired up to get back with my teammates and remain in Utah,” he said in a statement released by the team. “I’ve been with this core group for my whole career and it’s exciting that we have an opportunity to do some special things next season in front of the best fans in the NHL."
Barrett Hayton statistics
The 2018 No. 5 overall pick had 25 points in 67 games last season, but had a career-best 20 goals, 26 assists and 46 points in 2024-25. That includes a hat trick on Feb. 22, 2025.
All told, he has 65 goals and 155 points in 358 career games with Utah and the Arizona Coyotes.
With the offer sheet matched, the Devils could still look for a depth center via the trade route. Seattle Kraken center Shane Wright, whose numbers the last two seasons are similar to Hayton's, is reportedly available in a trade.
What's up with the Leo Carlsson offer sheet?
The Anaheim Ducks have two days left to match the Philadelphia Flyers' five-year, $90 million offer sheet to Leo Carlsson that makes him the league's top-paid player. The Ducks would receive four first-round picks from the Flyers if they don't match.
Since the offer sheet, the Ducks have re-signed defensemen Pavel Mintyukov and Tyson Hinds, leaving them with $9 million in cap space if they match. That won't be enough to re-sign Cutter Gauthier long-term unless they move out a player or two.
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When does the 2026-27 NHL season begin?
The schedule for the 2026-27 NHL season will be released on July 16, with the opening day games announced on the 15th. The season typically begins in early October.
NHL key dates 2026-27
July 15: Opening day schedule announced
July 16: Full NHL schedule announced
July 20: Arbitration hearings begin
September: Training camps open
October: 2026-27 NHL season begins
December 18-20: 2026 NHL Global Series Germany (Blackhawks vs. Senators in Dusseldorf)
February 6: NHL All-Star Game at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York.
The St. Louis Blues have plenty of depth in their prospect. The one knock they’ve received from analysts around the NHL is that it lacks a true superstar or franchise-altering prospect.
The criticism is fair, but the Blues have plenty of prospects with NHL projections, and several have become NHL regulars. Since the 2020 NHL draft, the Blues have watched Jake Neighbours (2020), Zach Bolduc (2021), Jimmy Snuggerud (2022), and Dalibor Dvorsky (2023) become NHL regulars.
In the 2025-26 season, the Blues saw Snuggerud and Dvorsky become not only full-time NHL players but also important pieces of the team’s success.
Heading towards the 2026-27 season, there are five Blues prospects who can compete for a roster spot out of training camp. Whether they make the Day 1 roster or their performance puts them on the radar to earn a call-up as the season goes along, a strong training camp and pre-season performance will go a long way.
Otto Stenberg, LW
Otto Stenberg earned his first call-up to the NHL this past season and showed plenty of traits that could help him start next season in the NHL.
The 21-year-old didn’t light it up offensively, scoring three goals and 10 points in 32 games, but he demonstrated his high compete level, battling for pucks and mixing it up physically despite boasting just a 5-foot-11, 188-pound frame.
Stenberg has all the traits of a reliable two-way middle-six winger. If he can improve his production, there could be a role on the second line, but for now, Stenberg has shown that he could be a difference maker on the third line very soon.
Stenberg isn’t a lock to make the opening night roster after the additions of Connor McMichael and Mason McTavish, as well as the extension for Jonatan Berggren, but a strong camp could turn heads.
Theo Lindstein’s season was fairly similar to Stenberg’s. Lindstein played fewer games than Stenberg but looked very comfortable in his action. In 17 games, Lindstein was stapled to veteran defenseman Colton Parayko’s left side, scoring two goals and four points while averaging 15:46 of ice time.
The 21-year-old is also not a lock to make the roster despite his strong performance last season. With the trade for Brandon Carlo, the right side of the defense is set. On the left, Philip Broberg and Cam Fowler are likely to fill in the top four roles, leaving Lindstein and Tyler Tucker to battle it out for the final spot on the third pairing.
Prior to the moves the Blues made, it looked like there was an avenue for Justin Carbonneau to compete for a roster spot, but that has likely changed.
The 19-year-old is almost guaranteed to start the season in the AHL, but with a strong training camp and AHL campaign, Carbonneau could work his way up the depth chart and serve as one of the top call-up candidates.
Carbonneau is a powerful skater who mixes it up physically whenever the opportunity arises. Offensively, Carbonneau has developed into a high-end goal scorer, as in his most recent QMJHL season, he notched 51 goals in 60 games. His balanced offensive game and his physical approach should help him adapt to the AHL rather quickly.
Adam Jiricek will also follow a similar path to Carbonneau. Prior to the Carlo trade, there was a path for Jiricek to compete for a roster spot, but that ship has likely sailed.
The 20-year-old will start the season in the AHL as he continues to develop his game. Jiricek has shown that he is a true, two-way defenseman. In the OHL, Jiricek showcased his offensive game, scoring 19 goals and 59 points in 55 games. With Czechia at the world juniors, Jiricek was a shutdown defenseman who scored timely goals.
With his 6-foot-2 frame, solid skating, puck-moving abilities, and offensive instincts, Jiricek should thrive early in the AHL season and truly put his name on coach Jim Montgomery’s radar.
Aleksanteri Kaskimaki, LW/C
You’d be hard-pressed to find a player more deserving of regular NHL action than Aleksanteri Kaskimaki.
Kaskimaki is a hard-working, two-way forward with the versatility to play on the wing or as a center. Last season, Kaskimaki skated on the top line, scoring 20 goals and 44 points in 64 games.
Kaskimaki may not be a first-line forward in the NHL, but he can be an effective bottom-six player on a successful team. With the fourth line projected to look like Ross Johnston, Pius Suter, and Alexey Toropchenko, Kaskimaki has an uphill battle to make the NHL roster on Day 1.
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While the article acknowledges that it might not have looked like Montreal has been very busy this offseason, it goes on to praise the two impact signings Kent Hughes has made: the contract extensions of Ivan Demidov and Jakub Dobes. It adds that the two players are vital to their core and that signing extensions early to keep offer sheets at bay is huge. There’s little doubt that Anaheim Ducks GM Pat Verbeek would agree.
The fact that the Sainte-Flanelle failed to sign a free agent in what was a largely underwhelming crop of players shouldn’t be seen as a failure on the part of the Canadiens, even if Hughes has failed to make an impact signing on the free market since his arrival at the helm.
Even if it’s not a very exciting approach, betting on organic growth has served the Habs well since the start of the Hughes, Jeff Gorton and Martin St-Louis era in Montreal. One of the best examples of that, without a doubt, is the progress in Nick Suzuki’s game. Not only has the pivot established himself as a real first-line center, putting an end to years of debate amongst pundits, but he’s improved across the board. In the last five years, his point production has gone from 61 to 66 to 77 to 89 to 101, and he’s also gained respect across all markets as a top defensive forward, as evidenced by his Frank J. Selke win.
His linemates have also experienced similar growth; Cole Caufield’s production has improved from 43 points to 64 (projected over 82 games since he put up 36 points in 46 games because of a shoulder injury), then to 65, 70, and 88. This past year, he even scored 51 goals, becoming the first Hab to reach the 50-goal mark since Stephane Richer. Caufield’s growth isn’t just about the numbers, though; it’s about the fact that he’s become a much more threatening player from everywhere in the offensive zone. The league cannot just worry about taking away the one-timer from the flank option; the sniper has other plays in his playbook.
As for Juraj Slafkovsky, he has gone from 51 points to 73 points, but he’s also started playing a much grittier game. He has accepted that he can best serve his team by bringing speed and physicality to the top line and retrieving the puck in deep and feeding it to his linemates. Even better, he’s wised up to the fact that once that’s done, his work isn’t over; he’s learned to then get to the busy areas and pick up the “garbage goals” on the doorstep, scoring 30 goals in a season for the first time in his career.
Lane Hutson has gone from a fantastic 66-point rookie season to an even more impressive 78-point sophomore year. The blueliner has doubled his goal production, going from six to 12 thanks to increased confidence in his own shot. He tested goaltenders over 30 more times this past season, and his shooting percentage has gone from 6.7% to 9.7%. With the work he has put in ahead of practices, working on his shot for ages with Adam Nicholas and Ivan Demidov, it’s hardly surprising.
Speaking of the young Russian, his first season in the NHL was a resounding success, and he did so while playing alongside two players who aren’t top-six players on a Cup-contending team. If Montreal can get some reinforcement on its second line ahead of the season, Demidov’s production could explode. Even if they don’t, having a year of NHL hockey under his belt will only make him more effective, and that should result in increased production as well.
Given how young the Canadiens are and the upward trajectory of their best players, it’s hardly surprising that the Habs brass feels content to bet on their continued progression. Besides, while the salary cap is forecast to rise in the foreseeable future, that growth won’t last forever, and sooner or later, teams throwing big contracts to free agents will run out of cap space. The Canadiens will be right there with both cap space and money to spend, since Hughes has managed to sign his core to team-friendly deals and has even found a way not to pay Kirby Dach $4 million, even if that was the qualifying offer he was due.
By then, the Habs are also hoping that their winning record and culture will have made Montreal a destination of choice for free agents. Make no mistake, the Canadiens are not inactive; they’re just playing the long game, and the rest of the league knows it, even if it’s not always evident to fans.
The Chicago Blackhawks have a lot invested in their top forward, Connor Bedard. They selected him with the first overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft with the expectation that he would be their franchise cornerstone.
Now, Bedard is three years into his NHL career, and there are many things that must be sorted out. For one, he hurt his shoulder during a summer practice, and there is still no update from the team on his status.
Two, he is a restricted free agent with no contract going into 2026-27. There is no way to know if the injury is going to impact that, or if there will be news on it before training camp begins in September.
A rumor has also swirled that the Philadelphia Flyers actually sent an offer sheet to Connor Bedard before Leo Carlsson signed his offer sheet for five years and $18 million per, but Bedard declined to sign it. That, however, is not confirmed and nothing more than a rumor at this point.
If that were true, it would be a great sign that he is loyal to the Chicago Blackhawks organization under any circumstances.
On Tuesday, new Blackhawks forward Cole Smith spoke to the local media for the first time, and he said something about Bedard that also speaks to his dedication to being a loyal leader on the team.
"(Bedard) sent me a text, which is pretty cool from a young guy," Smith said of his new teammate. "(I'm) looking forward to meeting him, seeing what makes him tick."
The fact that Bedard was willing to quickly send a text message to new Blackhawks teammates shows leadership and a desire to make these guys comfortable. He has no obligation to do so, especially being a 20-year-old currently sitting with no contract.
Moves like this not only make it clear that he wants to be a member of the organization that drafted him, but also that he wants to be the captain. He wore an "A" full-time after the trade deadline, and his actions support that decision. It may become a "C" once the pen hits the paper.
During the 2025-26 season, Bedard had 30 goals and 45 assists for 75 points in 69 games played. He also looked like a player who was faster and stronger for most of the campaign. His mid-season shoulder injury slowed him down a tad, but there is no denying that he is blossoming into one of the elite centers in the game.
Part of his getting better has to do with the training that he puts in during the off-season. He avoided the World Championships with Canada twice now in favor of preparing for the upcoming NHL season.
He hurt his shoulder (again) this time around, but it was all in an attempt to get better. He clearly wants to be elite. Every other player is more likely to put in the necessary work to improve if the team's best player is doing the same thing.
With Bedard's skill comes a bit of leadership responsibility, and he is warming to the task in a big way. At this point, there is no reason to question his desire to be a great leader on and off the ice for the Chicago Blackhawks.
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