NEW YORK (AP) — David Shuman has joined the New York Islanders’ ownership group as a limited partner, subject to NHL approval.
Shuman’s venture capital firm, Lateralus Holdings, and the team announced his minority investment on Monday. The Islanders did not disclose financial terms or what percentage Shuman is getting other than to say there will be no changes to day-to-day business and hockey operations or front office leadership.
Scott Malkin and Jon Ledecky serve as governor and alternate governor, with Oliver Haarmann, Dewey Shay and John Collins also listed as co-owners.
“David is one of the most passionate Islanders fans I know and an extraordinary builder of companies," Ledecky said in a statement. “That mindset will be invaluable as we continue to invest in this organization and in this community.”
In addition to founding Lateralus Holdings, Shuman serves as chairman of Oura and webAI.
“Hockey has been a constant in my life since childhood, both as a fan and a player, and the 1980 Miracle on Ice combined with the Islanders’ four consecutive Stanley Cup championships cemented a lifelong passion,” Shuman said in a statement, referring to the Islanders' glory days of the early '80s. "I’m honored to help support the Islanders’ future and their drive for a fifth Cup.”
It’s time for the Austrian right-shot blueliner to take the next step. The 21-year-old who was the fifth overall pick at the 2023 NHL draft has been plagued by injury ever since then, but these appear to be due to bad luck rather than being injury-prone, and if he can remain healthy this season, you can expect him to make the Montreal Canadiens’ roster.
It may not be right at the start of the season, but his time is coming and it’s obvious that Martin St-Louis would like to have balanced pairings rather than play Lane Hutson or Kaiden Guhle on their off side. If Kent Hughes had managed to acquire an experienced right-shot defenseman to play alongside Hutson, the Habs may have been more comfortable with giving Reinbacher, who has only played 78 AHL games with the Laval Rocket over parts of three seasons more time, more time to develop. That might have been the wiser path, but as things stand, they have a glaring hole to fill on the right side of the defense and the sooner the better.
While more games in the AHL could have been good for the prospect’s development and to adapt to the North American style of play, it remains that Reinbach did play three seasons of pro hockey in Switzerland before making the jump to his side of the pond, so he cannot exactly be called inexperienced at the pro level.
Last season, Reinbacher skated in 57 games with the Rocket, putting up 24 points in the process and had a short two-game audition with the Habs in which he did pick up an assist. It was the first season in which he was mainly healthy, only missing 11 games because of a fractured bone in his hand, and he looked much more confident as a result. Don’t expect him to become the same kind of defenseman as Hutson, it’s not what he was drafted to be. He caught the eye of the Canadiens’ scout because of his defensive awareness, his ability to read the play and his calm under pressure. On paper, that should make him the perfect partner for Hutson, but that’s quite a big role.
Officiellement le premier jour de sa carrière dans la LNH 🥹
Will the youngster be ready to step right in a second pairing role right away? That’s quite a big step, especially considering how many minutes Hutson spends on the ice. In an ideal world however, his arrival would mean that Alex Carrier doesn’t play anywhere else than on the third pairing, even if Reinbacher may need a bit of time to adapt before that becomes a reality.
You can fully expect Rainbacher to be given every opportunity to show what he can do at the top level at the upcoming training camp. He should see plenty of action, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him feature in three preseason games (since there are two split-squad games, he couldn’t play in any more).
If Reinbacher does graduate to the NHL this season, he shouldn’t be looked to for more than 10 to 15 points, it’s on the other side of the puck that he should really have his impact and he should stabilize the Canadiens’ blueline. His arrival should finally give St-Louis the opportunity to spread the workload more evenly across his defense corps since he will more than likely have more confidence in Reinbacher than he does in Jayden Struble or Arber Xhekaj, per se. The Austrian has shown in the AHL that ha can handle penalty killing duties, which would come in very handy for the Habs since Hutson has also started playing when down a man last season, it’s not something he should be doing and if St-Louis had confidence in his other blueliner, he wouldn’t be doing it either.
If Reinbacher has a convincing training camp, Hughes might finally have to make a choice between Struble and Xhekaj, once of them could have to go since there’s only so much depth you need on the blueline. Given how often Kaiden Guhle is injured however, the GM best be certain that those who remain, probably one of Struble and Xhekaj, and Adam Engstrom will be ready to step in.
For the first time since Cale Makar put pen to paper on the largest contract in NHL history, the Colorado Avalanche superstar and the man who helped make it happen will have a chance to speak publicly about it.
Makar and Avalanche President of Hockey Operations/General Manager Joe Sakic will meet with the media Monday afternoon, just days after Colorado locked up its franchise defenseman to an eight-year, $163.2 million extension.
The media availability is scheduled for 1 p.m. Monday, Aug. 31, in the Denver area.
There should be plenty to discuss.
Makar’s new contract carries a $20.4 million annual average value, making him the highest-paid player in NHL history by AAV and giving him the largest contract in league history by total value.
It’s also a contract that completely changed the market for defensemen.
Earlier this summer, Bowen Byram signed a six-year contract with a $12.5 million AAV, briefly establishing a new benchmark for defensemen. Makar’s $20.4 million AAV is 63.2% higher.
For Makar, the deal represents the latest chapter in what has become a remarkable career in Colorado. The 27-year-old has already won the Calder Trophy, two Norris Trophies, a Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe Trophy. He has grown from a highly touted prospect into arguably the most important player on the Avalanche roster.
Sakic has played a central role in keeping Makar in Colorado long term, ensuring that one of the franchise’s most important players won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.
Monday will be the first opportunity to hear directly from both of them following the agreement.
After months of speculation about what Makar’s next contract would look like, the number is no longer a mystery.
Now, Avalanche fans get to hear from Makar himself about why he chose to stay — and from Sakic about what it took to get the biggest deal in hockey history across the finish line.
EA Sports' latest entry for the NHL video game franchise is almost here, and with it has come their latest rankings and ratings for every player throughout the entirety of the NHL.
The New York Islanders have a roster in transition, as they slowly turn the page from the early 2020s era into the Matthew Schaefer era.
One player acquired at the 2026 Trade Deadline is Brayden Schenn, who has filled a leadership gap for the franchise. While Schenn's not what he once was, he's still a dependable middle-six center or winger, with elite leadership skills.
In 19 games with New York, Schenn had 6 goals and 11 points.
EA Sports revealed Schenn is an 84 overall for NHL27.
Vladimir Tarasenko is still unsigned heading into September, and the Edmonton Oilers should probably consider him.
Matt Savoie will miss training camp after suffering an injury during offseason training. Edmonton hasn't announced when he will return. Savoie was expected to play in the top six this season, leaving Mike Babcock with a spot to fill when camp opens.
Tarasenko played 75 games last season, scoring 23 goals and 47 points. He had 24 assists, played just under 15 minutes per game and added five goals on the power play. At 34, he has 327 goals and 709 points in 906 NHL games.
He can still play.
There is some Jack Roslovic in the situation, as Roslovic remained unsigned last summer after scoring 22 goals and 39 points for Carolina. Edmonton had interest throughout the offseason and eventually signed him to a one-year, $1.5 million contract in October.
Tarasenko has now made it through July and August without a contract. With training camps getting close and teams having already spent most of their cap space, the number of available roster spots is limited.
Savoie's injury creates a spot on the wing, and coincidentally, Tarasenko has played right wing throughout his career and scored 23 goals last season. He could take some of Savoie's minutes until Savoie is healthy, then move elsewhere in the lineup once everyone is available.
Playing him with Leon Draisaitl would make sense.
Draisaitl will inevitably spend time away from Connor McDavid this season, though Mike Babcock plans to try to play them together, and the Oilers need wingers when the separation happens. Tarasenko has spent 14 NHL seasons scoring goals from the wing. He can shoot, play on the power play and has enough experience to step into the lineup without much adjustment.
Tarasenko isn't limited to waiting for somebody to find him for a shot; he scored 24 assists last season. He can move the puck and has 382 assists in his career.
There would be options for Babcock once Savoie returns. Tarasenko could stay with Draisaitl, move onto another line or play second-unit power play. Edmonton will use more than 12 forwards this season. Take right now for example, camp hasn't even started and the injuries have already piled up.
Savoie, Mattias Janmark, Frederik Andersen, and Alec Regula will all camp. More players will miss games once the season starts. That's part of an NHL season and one of the reasons Edmonton spent the summer trying to add depth.
Vasily Podkolzin would also have another Russian player around. Podkolzin has been Edmonton's only Russian regular, while Tarasenko has spent 14 seasons in the NHL and played for six organizations. He has also played 132 playoff games and won two Stanley Cups.
Of course, the price will determine whether any of this makes sense.
Tarasenko remains unsigned this late in the summer, which limits his options. Roslovic eventually signed for $1.5 million last year after waiting into October, and Tarasenko could reach the point where a short contract becomes his only available route into an NHL organization.
The Oilers have a top-six winger out; Draisaitl will need wingers when he centres his own line, and injuries will create more openings during the season. Tarasenko played 75 games and scored 47 points last year in the regular season.
There is enough here for the Oilers to make a call.
After 13 seasons in the NHL, suiting up for four teams, including the Toronto Maple Leafs, Calle Jarnkrok is headed back to Sweden. The veteran right winger signed a three-year contract with Brynas of the SHL, the team announced early Monday morning.
Brynas is where Jarnkrok spent plenty of time during his Jr. career. From the U-18 team in 2007-08, he later joined the U-20 team and eventually reached the first team in 2009-10. Now, he's back with the club in which he started it all.
The last of his NHL career was with the Maple Leafs. He played four seasons there, featuring in 200 regular-season contests, as well as 30 appearances in three post-season campaigns. The 34-year-old also played for the Calgary Flames, Seattle Kraken and Nashville Predators, playing a total of 774 NHL games and registering 143 goals and 173 assists for 316 points.
His best season in Toronto came in 2022-23, which was his first year with the team. He signed a four-year contract with the Maple Leafs before that season, earning $2.1 million against the salary cap.
He put up 20 goals and 39 points in that campaign, which actually marked a career high for him. Jarnkrok had never reached 20 goals before or since that season, and the same with capping off with 39 points in 73 games.
In the last two seasons, as a 33- and 34-year-old, he was hardly a factor under coach Craig Berube. In 2025-26, he played 56 games, scoring six goals and eight points while averaging 11:50 of ice time per game. He also matched a career-low in plus-minus, notching a minus-15 rating.
In 2024-25, he played even fewer games with a nod to a groin and sports hernia injury that required surgery. Jarnkrok only ended up appearing in 19 outings, scoring one goal and seven points. Later in the Stanley Cup playoffs, he played in 12 of the Maple Leafs' 13 games, recording one assist.
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The National Hockey League has already listed its top 10 goalies, top 20 defensemen, top 20 wingers, and top 20 centers. Not everyone who made one of those lists is going to crack their list of the top 50 players, but the NHL is releasing a list made up of those previous lists put together.
Numbers 50-41 were revealed on Sunday night. Chicago Blackhawks superstar Connor Bedard was on the list, checking in at number 44. Bedard was the only Blackhawks player to make one of the position-based lists, so it is correct to assume that he is the only one who will appear in the top 50.
The NHL is incredibly deep with talent, so Bedard is surrounded by accomplished superstars in this realm of the list. Stanley Cup champions like Brandon Hagel, Brayden Point, and Sam Reinhart are ranked between 41 and 50, along with other team leaders like Nico Hischier, Wyatt Johnston, and Charlie McAvoy.
NHL Network's Top 50 Players Right Now list kicks off with 50-41!
Bedard wasn't on this list a year ago, so his 30-goal, point-per-game 2025-26 season made enough noise to get the attention of the folks who vote on it. His totals in 2026-27 will largely depend on how much time he misses from his shoulder injury at the start of the season, but his quality of play should take another step in year 4 of his NHL career.
When Bedard is on the ice, he will have more support than he’s ever had at this level. At even strength, they will figure out which wingers make the most sense for him, but you can expect to see him on the top power-play unit with Patrick Kane and Bowen Byram. Beyond those three, there will be changing parts all throughout the year.
This is far from the last time that Bedard will crack this list. In fact, this may be the lowest he will finish for the next decade or more. He has the potential to become a top-10 to 15 guy in the league. Only time will tell how long it takes to get there.
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The Columbus Blue Jackets have 31 days until opening night at Nationwide Arena. Today, we look at the history of jersey #31.
Let's take a look at today's edition, which is all about goalies.
Ron Tugnutt - 2001-2002 - Drafted by Quebec in the 1986 NHL Draft.
Tugnutt for President!! He played in 53 games for the Jackets in the first year of the franchise and went 22-25-5 with a .917 save %.
After two years with Columbus, he went on to play the final two years of his long career with the Dallas Stars and Utah Grizzlies of the AHL.
He played 16 years and won 186 games in the NHL. After retiring, he went into coaching, working at various levels and leagues as a goaltending coach.
Pascal Leclaire - 2004-2009 - Leclaire was drafted #8 overall in 2001 by Columbus.
He compiled a career record of 45-55-12 with Columbus and had a save % of .907%. The Jackets traded him to Ottawa on March 4, 2009, and he and a 2009 second-round pick went to Ottawa in exchange for Antoine Vermette. The pick the CBJ sent to Ottawa would wind up being Robin Lehner. Leclaire would retire on November 12, 2012. Leclaire was also in net for Columbus and gave up the first career goal to future Hall-of-Fame and all-time leading goal scorer Alex Ovechkin.
David LeNeveu - 2011 - Drafted by Phoenix in the 2002 NHL Draft.
LeNeveu played in one game for Columbus during the 2010-11 season. He played one period and gave up 2 goals on 12 shots. He never played another NHL game after his time in Columbus and finished his career in the KHL in 2014-15.
He bounced around different leagues before retiring, playing in Russia, Poland, and Slovakia. He was also the goaltending coach, President, Part-Owner, and Governor of the
Nanaimo Clippers of the BCHL from 2014 to 2017.
Shawn Hunwick - 2012 - Undrafted out of Sterling Heights, Michigan.
Hunwick famously made one appearance for Columbus, playing 3 minutes on April 7, 2012. He relieved Steve Mason in a 7-3 Jackets win. He never played another NHL game and finished his career in Germany in 2013 after just one year of professional hockey. Hunwick announced his retirement from professional hockey on August 26, 2013.
Curtis McElhinney - 2014 - Drafted by Calgary in 2002.
McElhinney could have been listed as the player who wore #31 the best. He started 66 games for the Jackets and came in to relieve the starters another 19 times. His career record with Columbus was 26-33-8. He went on to win a pair of Stanley Cups for the Tampa Bay Lightning, backing up starter Andrei Vasilevskiy. He retired on September 25, 2021.
He was the Toronto Maple Leafs Dir. of Goaltending from 2023 to 2026.
Anton Forsberg - 2015-2017 - Drafted by Columbus in 2011.
He played for the Columbus organization for three seasons but would only get 9 starts. In those 9 starts from 2014 to 2017, his record was 1-8. He really showed his worth during the 2015-16 season while playing for the Cleveland Monsters. He had a record of 23-10-6 and also went 9-0 in the Calder Cup Playoffs. He and former CBJ goalie Joonas Korpisalo guided the team to a Calder Cup Championship.
On 23 June 2017, he and Brandon Saad were part of a package to the Chicago Blackhawks that brought Artemi Panarin to Columbus. After five years in Ottawa, he signed a free agent deal with the LA Kings for two years.
Michael Hutchinson - 2023 - Drafted by the Boston Bruins in the 2008 NHL Draft.
Hutchinson started 10 games for Columbus after coming over from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for Blue Jackets legend Jonathan Quick in March of 2023. He went 2-6-3 and made 6 relief appearances as well.
He left to play in Finland for the 24-25 season but hasn't been signed anywhere for 25-26.
With 31 days until opening night at Nationwide Arena, the anticipation for the season is in full swing.
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PITTSBURGH, PA - MAY 31: (EDITOR'S NOTE: Image was created as an Equirectangular Panorama. Import image into a panoramic player to create an interactive 360 degree view.) Fans gather outside of the arena prior to Game Two of the 2017 NHL Stanley Cup Final between the Nashville Predators and the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena on May 31, 2017 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Here’s a fun one, let’s hop back into the time machine to July 2024 for an article titled, “What could the Penguins look like in two years?”
Spoiler alert: the very active Kyle Dubas changed the picture in ways that couldn’t be forseen. We knew it at the time but you can’t predict the unpredictable. It only took a few weeks from that article for the Brayden Yager for Rutger McGroarty trade to derail a chunk of the outlook, and things only changed further from there.
It is a good piece to look back on, and recognize some of the changes and improvements made over the past couple years as Dubas angles the Pens into being a strong team now while still assembling a large quantity of future picks that could become NHL players down the line.
Top six forward pot: Crosby, Bryan Rust, Rickard Rakell, Brayden Yager, and longer shots like Ville Koivunen, Tristan Broz
—Imagining top lines without Malkin is a peculiar process. Two years from now, ideally Yager should be able to play on the second line, possibly at center. Rust and Rakell will still be under contract, though they could be moved by then. We’ll have to see what comes from the development of players like Koivunen and Broz as they begin their journeys. Odds are high that at least one, if not two players not currently in the organization will be in key roles for the Pens for 2026-27 as the team turnover rates increase and more talent is sought out.
The biggest surprise of all is that Evgeni Malkin earned a spot on the team for 2026-27. What looked like a potential winding down has been delayed. That’s a positive short-term development, since quite frankly a team can always use a quality scoring forward in the mix no matter the age.
Counting on individual young players to go from prospects to NHL talent is tough to do. Overall though, three holdovers (Crosby, Rakell and Rust) remain in the picture. It’s the other areas that didn’t develop. The Pens added Egor Chinakhov, which is a big win for the organization. Whether or not they can get players like Ben Kindel, Nick Robertson and Andrey Kuzmenko to this level will be one worth watching.
Bottom six forward pot: Who knows! But perhaps and ideally: Vasily Ponomarev, maybe Sam Poulin, maybe even longer-shot of Tanner Howe, other cheap and new players
—As of this moment, Pittsburgh only has two forwards under contract for 2026-27 (Rust and Rakell). That builds in a great deal of flexibility for Kyle Dubas, who will be able to stake out in any number of directions by 24 months from now to construct his team as he sees fit. The Pens’ system isn’t that stocked at the moment with young players who could stick or have long-term futures in the organization. Could Drew O’Connor be extended and figure in here? Sure! Is O’Connor likely to be on the team 24 months from now? Well…probably not.
There is normally lots of movement at the bottom of the roster in the first place, and Dubas loves to swirl players at this level in and out of the team. The only thing to expect is that the future bottom of the lineup is completely unpredictable at this point.
Dubas has had to do a lot of work to scare up bottom-six options, doing a good job in this department. Connor Dewar and Blake Lizotte were added for very low cost and provide excellent fourth line options. McGroarty, Koivunen and Elmer Soderblom may find places here, with Tommy Novak and Justin Brazeau in the picture too.
Others that we thought or hoped a while back that might be in the picture like Ponomarev and Poulin have frittered away. So it goes in the world of frequent player movement and mostly unfulfilled potential that frequently sees prospects fail to stick as NHL regulars.
Overall, this is an area that will continue to have a lot of swirl and mixing with players coming and going off the active roster to either the IR, the AHL or out of the organization altogether.
Top four defense: Erik Karlsson, Kris Letang (?), Ryan Graves
—Will Letang (39 for the start of the 2026-27 season) still be playing? He reportedly had some injuries at the end of this season. Obviously he’ll want to keep the wheels on as long as possible, but old players tend to fall out and unofficially retire with regularity. Letang’s contractual status doesn’t guarantee inclusion in the roster two years from now (and there are only two 39+ defensemen under contract for this upcoming season: Brent Burns and Ryan Suter). Graves we’ll still include here, since he’s under contract and if he’s NOT playing on at least the second pair after three years in Pittsburgh by the start of 2026-27, one would think he would be traded for another bad contract by this point.
Given the question marks here, the Pens have a lot of building to do on the blueline in the next 24 months. It could also really use Owen Pickering getting his development into high gear and finding a big hit there, unless the team makes a move to re-sign Marcus Pettersson the defense looks lacking or at least in need of some real attention and talent infusions in the very near future.
Well, sadly Graves has neither been traded nor justified his massive contract. Just is what it is by 2026, especially with the willingness to waive and demote him to the AHL last year. Otherwise, Letang and Karlsson were hits that are in-place to be matchup level defensemen for the Pens last season.
Bottom end defense: Pickering, Jack St. Ivany
St. Ivany will still be under contract at this point but who knows how much of a hold he will keep on that position over the next two seasons to sink or swim. Defensive depth is another thing that tends to swirl around (no one could have foreseen 24 months ago that St. Ivany, John Ludvig, Sebastian Aho and Ryan Shea would be currently around) and isn’t that big of a concern to have as a hazy question mark at this point.
There hasn’t been a lot of positive stories at the bottom of the lineup. Pickering’s career hasn’t taken off, St. Ivany hung around until getting traded this summer. Young defensive development in the 2020’s has been an issue for the Pens. They haven’t had a lot to work with but players like Pickering and PO Joseph failing to move up the ranks has hurt. They did a good job with John Marino and Marcus Pettersson, but since then there hasn’t been much beyond Ryan Shea. Here’s to hoping that changes in the near future for players like Harrison Brunicke and to an extent newcomers Declan Carlile and Kaeden Korczak that are going to have to grow to pay off.
Goaltending: Tristan Jarry, Joel Blomqvist
Alex Nedeljkovic has a contract through 2025-26, but by this year Blomqvist will surely be up in the big league, and possibly not for the first time. Jarry remains a wild card and will still have two years remaining on his contract in 2026-27. Jarry’s future, on or off the Penguins, might be one of the more interesting storylines over then next couple months/years for how that ends up going for him and the team.
No one really knew in 2024 when Sergei Murashov would enter the organization, his emergence has taken a lot of the shine off Blomqvist. Blomqvist also didn’t take the steps that were expected a few years ago, though he does have a one-way contract in 2027-28 and might require a little more patience.
Dubas’ ability to dump Jarry’s contract has been trumpeted before, and frankly it should be celebrated at every turn. That was a nicely done way to amend for the mistake of giving out that contract to now have Girard (plus a couple of second round picks) to show as a direct result of the Jarry trade.
—
Overall, the Pens remain a difficult team to forecast for in the future. That won’t be changing anytime soon since only six players have contracts for the 2028-29 season at this point. The team has been built for an upcoming turnover, though as we saw with projecting Malkin off by 2026 a couple years ago – nailing exactly when that happens will have to be more of a wait and see.
Over the years, a number of players have worn the number 32 for the San Jose Sharks. This summer though, it seems like a disservice to his legendary career to discuss any player other than the late Claude Lemieux, who tragically passed away in May.
Lemieux was drafted in the 1983 NHL Draft with the 26th overall pick by the Montreal Canadiens. A native of Buckingham, Quebec, Lemieux had to move just two hours away from his hometown to join his new team. He made his NHL debut during the 1984-85 season, appearing in just a single game that year. The following season, he got another short stint in the NHL as he appeared in 10 games but earned his first Stanley Cup at the end of the postseason.
Lemieux truly established himself as an NHL regular during the 1986-87 season, playing in 76 games. That season, he scored 27 goals and had 56 points, but also notably registered 156 penalty minutes as well.
At the end of the decade, Lemieux was traded to the New Jersey Devils after six seasons with the Canadiens. Lemieux spent five seasons with the Devils, winning his second Stanley Cup and his only Conn Smythe Trophy during the 1994-95 season.
Following the Stanley Cup victory, Lemieux was on the move again, this time to Colorado. He joined the Avalanche right after they relocated from Quebec City and lifted the Stanley Cup for the third time in his first season in Denver. After five partial seasons with Colorado, he returned to New Jersey for the second half of the 1999-00 season and won his fourth Stanley Cup.
After his final Stanley Cup, Lemieux spent some time with the Phoenix Coyotes and had a short stint with the Dallas Stars. He then retired from the NHL following the 2002-03 season, notably without playing for the Sharks. So, dear reader, if you're a newer fan, you may be asking how he relates to the Sharks.
After a considerable amount of time away from the NHL, Lemieux made a shocking return to join the Sharks during the 2008-09 season. He only played 18 games at the NHL level, spending the most of his time in the organization in the AHL, but he officially ended his NHL career in San Jose.
Lemieux is remembered as one of the NHL's best agitators, as he loved to get under the skin of his opponents, but he also wasn't afraid to stand up for himself or a teammate, although it was usually the result of his own antics.
We're entering the final stretch of the long summer without hockey, as NHL training camps are just a few weeks away. Once the Pittsburgh Penguins get back into full swing, it will become clearer and clearer how their 2026-27 roster is going to take shape.
Even though there are some lingering questions regarding roster decisions this season because of the sheer volume of players the Penguins have, another thing to keep an eye on will be some of the players that are all but guaranteed a spot.
And some of those guys are poised to have a big season.
Between some veterans sticking around, some run-of-the-mill bottom-sixers, and some prospects making a push, there are also several younger players who are still working through their full NHL transformation and have the potential for bg breakouts in 2026-27.
Ben Kindel
Of all options on this list, Kindel is the most obvious one. After unexpectedly making the NHL team out of camp last season as an 18-year-old, Kindel showed quite a lot of potential as a legitimate two-way NHL center last season, registering 17 goals and 35 points.
Typically, when young, higher-upside forwards make the jump to the NHL level - especially as young as Kindel was - the production comes before the 200-foot game rounds out. Well, for Kindel, he seems to already have most of the 200-foot stuff figured out, and his hockey sense and playmaking ability have already been on display.
So, where does he go from here? Well, it only makes sense that he'll, eventually, work his way up the lineup down the middle. And the better the talent that flanks him, the more productive he will be.
It could be argued that Chinakhov already experienced his big breakout last season, when he had 18 goals and 36 points in 43 games with the Penguins after being dealt from the Columbus Blue Jackets midseason. His performance earned him a three-year extension, too.
The Penguins believe they may have a star player on their hands in Chinakhov, who has one of the best releases in the NHL. His goal-scoring ability is legitimate, and he also had legitimate chemistry with veteran Evgeni Malkin, who is coming back for another season.
Whether it's he, Malkin, and fellow Russian Andrei Kuzmenko together on a line or him and Malkin centered by either Kindel, Rickard Rakell, or Tommy Novak, the table is set for Chinakhov to build on what he did last season in Pittsburgh. If he can, the Penguins have a large piece of their future.
The younger Robertson was dealt to Pittsburgh this summer by the Toronto Maple Leafs, and given the rocky relationship between the young forward and the Leafs in the past couple of seasons, a change-of-scenery departure was in the cards for a while.
It's not as if Robertson was not a decent player for the Leafs. He recorded 16 goals and 32 points in 78 games last season, which are respectable numbers for a bottom-six forward. And his goal production has remained pretty consistent for the last three seasons.
But it has always felt like Robertson has more to give. He finally got the change of scenery he wanted, and given the number of options that the Penguins have as far as lineups, he could find himself playing alongside high-level playmakers.
Don't be surprised to see Robertson finally have his moment this season.
It may come as a bit of a surprise that the likely other goaltender, Sergei Murashov, is not the one on this list. After all, many are expecting Murashov to make a statement once he bursts onto the scene and take over as the No. 1 at some point this season.
But don't forget about Silovs. Yes, up to this point, his career has seen quite a bit of inconsistency. Last season, he had just an .888 save percentage in the regular season.
Then came playoff time. He surrendered just five goals on 82 shots for a .939 save percentage in the first round against the Phildadelphia Flyers. That performance, stacked with others, has proven Silovs to be a big-game performer, and it proves he is capable of high-level goaltending.
At this point, it's just a matter of him putting it all together with more consistency. If he can find that consistency - especially with the knowledge that a young goaltender or two is nipping at his heels - it's going to be tough for Murashov or anyone else to steal his minutes.
The Buffalo Sabres took great steps ahead this past season, finishing in first place in the highly-competitive Atlantic Division, then winning their first-round Stanley Cup playoffs series against the Boston Bruins before falling to the Montreal Canadiens in Round 2.
That success means that the TheHockeyNews.com’s 2025-26 grades for Sabres players will be largely positive. And in this “Sabres Grades” file, we’re focused on goaltender Colten Ellis.
Ellis didn’t get a ton of playing time playing behind veterans Alex Lyon and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, but one of the reasons Buffalo traded young netminder Devon Levi is that Ellis had leaped over Levi in Buffalo’s goaltending depth chart. Ellis is now looking like Buffalo’s goalie-of-the-future, but the beginning of his NHL career has been much to the Sabres’ liking.
Colten Ellis
Position: Goaltender
Grade: B+
The Skinny: Ellis put forth a terrific rookie NHL season, appearing in 16 games and posting an 8-4-2 record, a 2.90 GAA, a .903 save percentage and one shutout. Those numbers weren’t going to get Ellis a Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goalie, but the 25-year-old showed enough last year to push himself up the Sabres’ organizational depth chart.
Ellis has established himself as a strong netminder at the American League level with the Springfield Thunderbirds, posting strong years in 2023-24 and 2024-25. He needs more opportunity, but given that Luukkonen and Lyon both are under contract next season, more playing time may be hard to come by – at least, so long as the injury bug doesn’t sideline one or both of that goalie tandem.
Ellis is entering the final season of his current two-year contract, so he’s got all the motivation in the world to play more and play well this coming season. Lyon is also in the final year of his contract, and that means Ellis could push Lyon out the door. And if that’s what happens and Buffalo benefits from a step-up season from Ellis, Sabres GM Jarmo Kekalainen has the option to trade Lyon or Luukkonen and make Buffalo’s goaltending tandem into a 50/50 games split.
That’s a column for another day. This file is about last season, and while Ellis didn’t finish off the 2025-26 season particularly well, he had enough strong stretches to convince Buffalo to retain him.
Ellis is shaping up to be a long-term fixture in Western New York, and if he continues progressing, Ellis could be a significant part of a Sabres team capable of winning a championship.
With the 26th overall pick of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, the Montreal Canadiens selected forward Filip Mesar. So far, the former first-round pick has struggled to take much of a step forward in his development.
Mesar appeared in 71 games during this past season with the Laval Rocket, where he recorded nine goals, 18 assists, and 27 points. This was after he had four goals and 18 points in 42 games for Laval during the 2024-25 season.
With numbers like these, Mesar has yet to have that big breakout year in the AHL. He has also still not made his NHL debut for Montreal. With that, things have been rocky with the first-round pick's development.
As a result of this, it is clear that the 2026-27 season is a big year for Mesar. The Canadiens prospect forward needs to take a serious step in the right direction with his development. This is especially so when noting that he is entering the final season of his entry-level contract.
With Mesar being 22 years old, there is still time for him to improve. However, if he continues to struggle in the AHL, it will only create more questions about his future with the Habs organization.
History was made over the weekend, as Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar became the first NHL player to be signed to a contract that pays him a yearly salary of over $20 million.
Makar, a two-time Norris Trophy winner and former Conn Smythe Trophy winner, inked a eight-year, $163.2 million contract extension that will pay him $20.4 million a season when the deal takes effect in 2027.
That being said, Makar’s massive new extension only underscores just how much of a bargain Detroit Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider’s contract is shaping up to be.
Seider, who won the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s Rookie of the Year in 2021-22, is coming off his best season yet. He set career highs in goals, assists, points and ice time while continuing his ironman streak of never missing a game.
He also finished fifth overall in balloting for the Norris Trophy while finishing 11th overall in balloting for the Hart Trophy, given annually to the NHL's Most Valuable Player in regular season play.
While Seider will never be as offensively flashy as Makar, he has firmly established himself as one of the NHL’s best and most effective defensemen, and is doing so while earning less than half of what Makar will make once his new extension takes effect.
Seider, who was former GM Steve Yzerman's first Draft selection in 2019, was re-signed to a seven-year, $59.85 million contract in September 2024. Seider's salary cap hit is $8.55 million.
There are 21 NHL defensemen who will have a higher salary cap hit than Seider this season, including Makar, Rasmus Dahlin, Evan Bouchard, Thomas Harley, Darnell Nurse, Roman Josi, and Drew Doughty.
While it was time for the Red Wings to move on from Yzerman as GM after seven straight seasons without making the Stanley Cup Playoffs, there’s no denying that the extension he negotiated with Seider is proving to be one of the NHL’s best bargains given the value the defenseman brings to Detroit.
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Filip Hronek is committed to seeing things out with the Vancouver Canucks.
The 28-year-old defenceman is one of a crop of players that don’t quite fit in the Canucks’ age timeline heading into their oncoming rebuild, the likes of which have been kicked-off with budding prospects Braeden Cootes, Caleb Malhotra, and Zeev Buium.
Still, despite how things have shook out for the Canucks through the past two seasons, it’s reasonable to say that no current player has made more of a positive impact on their team than Hronek. The defenceman was even named his team’s MVP at the end of the 2025–26 season after grabbing the metaphorical reins post-Quinn Hughes trade in December.
Acquired by Vancouver in 2023 in exchange for a first and second-round pick in that year’s draft, Hronek found success on a pairing with Hughes in his first full season with the Canucks. After Vancouver’s magical 2023–24 season, the defenceman signed an eight-year contract extension with the team currently set to expire after 2031–32.
Evidently, things have changed since this point in time. No longer are the Canucks a game away from heading to the Conference Finals of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. No longer are they considered bona-fide contenders.
The moves that have occurred since Vancouver’s Game 7 loss to the Edmonton Oilers have set the team on a very different path from where they seemed to have been going back then. Hughes, J.T. Miller, Tyler Myers, Conor Garland, and many others have since been dealt in favour of younger, budding pieces with a long-term contention goal in mind.
It’s these types of moves that have led many to lean towards trading Hronek in order to accumulate more future assets.
The defenceman sees things differently.
“We like the city, and obviously the fans are great in Vancouver. They were supporting us even though we didn’t have a good year last year, and they still are showing up to the games, and it was sold out,” Hronek told David Alter of The Hockey News at the NHL’s European Player Media Tour. “Just like it overall in Vancouver, and that’s why I signed there for eight years.”
Is it about the desire to be part of change in Vancouver, or is it the prospect of helping mentor the next generation, kind of like what Luke Schenn brings in his third stint with the Canucks?
Partially both, Hronek says.
“I think it’s part of it, but it’s more about the commitment to the deal.”
Now entering year three of said deal, Hronek has emerged as one of the team’s leaders — a role especially important after the departure of veterans Teddy Blueger and Marcus Pettersson in free agency and trade respectively. Joining the team are veterans Schenn, Brendan Gallagher, and Jamie Oleksiak. These three, along with Paul Cotter, are the main additions the Canucks have made to their lineup heading into 2026–27.
“There’s been a lot of changes over the summer, and I hope we’re going the right direction, and we’re gonna be way better than last year.”
It’s these players, as well as longtime Canucks Brock Boeser, Elias Pettersson, and Thatcher Demko who will be relied on most to help usher in the new generation consisting of players like Zeev Buium.
“He’s listening and he wants to get better every day, and it’s the same for [Tom Willander] and [defenceman Elias Pettersson]. It’s easy to deal with them or mentor them because they’re listening and you know they’re trying to get better and want to be better players.”
Mar 26, 2026; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks defenseman Filip Hronek (17) makes a pass against the Los Angeles Kings in the first period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images
Off-ice changes are a different story. Shortly after the season’s end, Vancouver made significant changes to their front-office and coaching staff, firing General Manager Patrik Allvin and Head Coach Adam Foote, and shifting President of Hockey Operations Jim Rutherford to an advising role. Into the NHL club’s ranks came Abbotsford Canucks GM Ryan Johnson and Head Coach Manny Malhotra, with Daniel and Henrik Sedin moving from player development roles to Co-Presidents.
Hronek’s experience with Malhotra in particular, while limited, has given him a glimpse at what Vancouver could be getting in the coming seasons.
“I don’t know much, I’m not gonna lie,” he said of working with his new Head Coach. “I met him at a couple training camps, and I’d been skating in Abby for like a week when I was injured, so it was fun practices there, and I think it’s really detailed.”
The defenceman also echoed praise of the Sedins, affirming his belief that role changes won’t impact the way they go about their duties.
“They’re great people, and they’re always trying to help with anything, and so I think they will stay the same.”
Changes have come for the Canucks in the past few seasons, and more change is still likely to come along the way. More draft picks will be accumulated, more players will come and go, and more progress will be made towards a long-term contending solution.
When it comes to Hronek’s future with the team, if he has things his way, his commitment will outweigh the prospect of change.
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