Earlier today, The Hockey News took a closer look at Braeden Bowman’s mindset heading into the 2026-27 season.
The 23-year-old forward wanted to prove he belonged in the Vegas Golden Knights’ long-term plans. He wanted to turn last season’s promising NHL debut into something more permanent and show that he was more than a player simply passing through the lineup.
As it turns out, Bowman didn’t have to wait very long for an answer.
The Golden Knights had already made up their minds.
Vegas general manager Kelly McCrimmon announced Thursday that the organization had signed Bowman to a six-year contract extension worth $3.4 million annually, keeping him under contract through the 2032-33 season.
It is a substantial commitment to a player who, not long ago, was still trying to establish himself within the organization.
Bowman made his NHL debut against the New York Islanders on Nov. 13 and wasted little time making an impression. He scored in three consecutive games and recorded a point in five straight, tying franchise rookie records in both categories. He finished the season with 26 points — eight goals and 18 assists — in 54 games, tying for seventh among Vegas forwards.
But his impact went beyond his initial NHL audition.
Bowman continued to dominate when he returned to the Henderson Silver Knights, recording 26 points in just 20 AHL games during the 2025-26 campaign. Fourteen of those points came during an eight-game stretch in April, earning him AHL Player of the Month honors.
His 1.30 points-per-game rate was the highest among AHL forwards who played at least 15 games last season.
That production helps explain why Vegas was willing to make such a significant investment now.
Bowman wanted this season to be about proving he was worth a permanent place in the Golden Knights’ lineup.
Instead, Vegas just gave him six more years to show exactly why he was worth it.
The Winnipeg Jets open training camp next week, and goalie Connor Hellebuyck is likely hoping that a trade will occur before that. The Vezina and Hart Trophy winner revealed his trade request late last month and according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, there appears to be no chance of reconciliation between the Jets and the netminder who has played 625 games over 11 seasons in Manitoba since 2015.
“Some things that happened last year that were out of the Jets control, post-Olympics, that have made the situation impossible to resolve. I think the Jets were hopeful that maybe it would change, but I don’t think that’s possible at all.” Friedman said on Thursday’s 32 Thoughts podcast. ““I do think the Jets understand that now & we'll see where this goes over the next few days.”
Friedman indicates that a Hellebuyck trade may move more swiftly, since the 33-year-old has a much larger list of destinations than other players who looked to move this summer, but that deals that were discussed around the NHL Draft in June are not possible now, since assets that were involved in trade offers (such as first round picks, players or prospects) were either selected, used in other deals, or unavailable due to no-trade clauses that fell into place after July 1.
Specific to Buffalo, the fourth overall pick (used to select defenseman Daxon Rudolph) is now unavailable, and goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen five-team no-trade clause came into effect in July. The Florida Panthers were reportedly interested, but some of the pieces offered in the deal for Hellebuyck were since used to acquire forward Brady Tkachuk and goalie Jacob Markstrom from New Jersey.
Friedman indicated that it is imperative for Winnipeg GM Kevin Cheveldayoff to do well in a Hellebuyck trade, and is looking for a hockey trade rather than future assets to keep the Jets as a competitive club. Along with the Sabres, the Utah Mammoth and Carolina Hurricanes are still in the mix, but there are mixed signals of whether the New Jersey Devils are.
Jun 14, 2017; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins right wing Phil Kessel (81) waves to the crowd during the Stanley Cup championship parade and rally in downtown Pittsburgh. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Phil and Amanda Kessel have each been elected to the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame’s 2026 class.
During his 4 years with the Penguins, Phil Kessel helped the team win two Stanley Cup titles as a key part of the franchise’s infamous “HBK Line” alongside Carl Hagelin and Nick Bonino.
In his 4 seasons in Pittsburgh, Phil Kessel scored 110 goals and added 193 assists in 328 games.
After leaving Pittsburgh, Phil Kessel added another Stanley Cup title to his resume with the Vegas Golden Knights, completing his career with 992 points in 1,286 games.
“Obviously, this is a great honor,” Phil Kessel said to NHL.com. “I loved playing for USA Hockey over the years, enjoyed my time, enjoyed all the friends I made. It was always a great honor to play for the team, and I’m just happy to be inducted. This is a great class. Obviously, I’m excited to go in with my sister. She was a great player.”
At the international level, Phil Kessel represented the United States at the Winter Olympics in 2010 and 2014, bringing home one silver medal.
Phil Kessel’s younger sister, Amanda, who is currently serving as the Penguins’ Director of Minor League Operations and Assistant General Manager of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, had an outstanding international playing career, representing the United States at the the Winter Olympics three times, winning gold once and silver twice.
“It’s, obviously, really special to go in with my brother, who’s helped me a ton throughout my career, and I couldn’t be more proud of him as well,” Amanda Kessel said.
In addition to her international career, Amanda Kessel won three national championship titles at the University of Minnesota and played two seasons in the NWHL.
The Kessel duo will become just the second brother-sister pair to be elected to the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame, joining Cammi and Tony Granato, the latter having served as a Penguins assistant coach under Dan Bylsma.
The official enshrinement ceremony will take place on November 30.
One of the more shocking bits of news to come out of the tail end of the offseason is that the Anaheim Ducks are moving on from veteran winger Chris Kreider.
According to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, Anaheim is expected to place the 35-year-old on waivers for the purpose of mutually terminating his contract, a move that requires Kreider's approval and will make him an unrestricted free agent.
The decision stems from a cap crunch in Anaheim after the Ducks matched Philadelphia's five-year, $90 million offer sheet for center Leo Carlsson, leaving them roughly $9 million in space while still needing to lock up restricted free agent Cutter Gauthier, who scored 41 goals last season.
Kreider is coming off a 50-point season and has shown he still has plenty left in the tank, even if his overall numbers have trended down from his peak years with the New York Rangers. It begs the question of whether the Detroit Red Wings should consider making a run at him, given how much the team could use his production, the veteran presence he'd bring to a young locker room, and the boost he could provide to a club still trying to end the NHL's longest active playoff drought.
There is a real caveat here is Detroit doesn't currently have a general manager, and by the time the search wraps up, Kreider may already be off the board. There's also the matter of what Kreider himself wants.
He's never won a Stanley Cup, and after leaving a playoff-caliber roster in Anaheim, he may prefer to chase a ring with a more established contender rather than help rebuild one. Friedman has reported that Kreider, a Boxford, Massachusetts, native who spent his first 13 NHL seasons with the Rangers, wants to head back East to be closer to family, and he won't report to training camp if claimed by a team he doesn't want to play for.
The Boston Bruins have emerged as the perceived frontrunner given his ties to the area and his time at Boston College, with the Rangers and a handful of other Eastern Conference clubs also mentioned as possibilities.
Still, if Detroit can move quickly once a GM is in place, adding a former 50-goal scorer like Kreider could be a worthwhile swing for a team looking for difference-makers, potentially even slotting him into a top-six role.
It's an unlikely outcome given his stated preference to stay East, but the NHL has a way of producing surprises, and with Anaheim's cap crunch forcing its hand, a proven goal-scorer like Kreider landing in Detroit's lap isn't entirely out of the question.
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Ahead of the 2026-27 campaign, NHL.com has released its top 26 prospects list. As expected, 2026 first overall pick Gavin McKenna took the top spot, followed by Porter Martone and Anton Frondell. The list also featured one Vancouver Canucks prospect, with Caleb Malhotra being ranked 22nd overall.
Malhotra was selected third overall by Vancouver during the 2026 NHL Entry Draft. The 18-year-old had an OHL campaign to remember, recording 84 points during the regular season before adding 26 points in 15 playoff games. Malhotra is headed to the NCAA this year, where he will play for Boston University.
NHL.com's Top Prospects For The 2026-27 Season:
Gavin McKenna
Porter Matrone
Anton Frondell
Ivar Stenberg
James Hagens
Cole Hutson
Tij Iginla
Michael Hage
Caleb Desnoyers
Chase Reid
Konsta Helenius
Viggo Björck
Carson Carels
Ilya Protas
Roger McQueen
Victor Eklund
Alberts Šmits
Carter Yakemchuk
Brady Martin
David Reinbacher
Anton Silayev
Caleb Malhotra
Roman Kantserov
Jacob Fowler
Keaton Verhoeff
Trey Augustine
Caleb Malhotra at Vancouver Canucks Development Camp (Photo Credit: Kaja Antic/The Hockey News)
Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.
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Two months after the Philadelphia Flyers tendered an aggressive $90 million offer sheet to Leo Carlsson, the Anaheim Ducks are beginning to pay the price for matching the blockbuster contract.
Former Flyers draft pick Cutter Gauthier, now a 40-goal-scorer just two years into his NHL career, is still in need of a new contract from the Ducks and remains an RFA.
After matching the Carlsson offer sheet and making a handful of auxiliary signings, the Ducks had just $9 million in cap space to reach an agreement with Gauthier, and as we now know, that was never going to happen.
As a result, Anaheim was forced to consider gutting their roster depth and salary dump players to free up space for Gauthier, and again, no takers were found.
So, on Wednesday, veteran winger Chris Kreider was placed on unconditional waivers for the purpose of contract termination, and on Thursday, Kreider cleared waivers, making him an unrestricted free agent and freeing up $6.5 million in cap space for the Ducks.
Kreider, 35, was in the last year of his contract anyway, but because the Flyers put the Ducks in such a bind with the Carlsson offer sheet, Anaheim loses a winger with 958 regular season games of experience, and a player who scored 22 goals and 50 points for their club last year.
Replacing Kreider and his 22 goals and 50 points won't be an easy task for the Ducks either, as Troy Terry will miss the start of the season due to injury, and other depth options include Frank Vatrano, who scored five goals and nine points in 50 games last year; and newcomer A.J. Greer, a career fourth-liner who exploded for 17 goals and 32 points last year after having previously never scored more than six goals and 17 points in a single season.
That leaves a lot of heavy lifting for Carlsson, who wouldn't have to do so on the Flyers, Gauthier, and Beckett Sennecke. Their only support offensively will come from Alex Killorn, Mikael Granlund, Vatrano, Greer, Ryan Poehling, Nathan Gaucher, Jeff Malott, Nikita Nesterenko, and Tim Washe.
Of course, it goes almost without saying that the motivation behind all of this was the Flyers simply trying to pull a lever that was available to them to try and acquire a young No. 1 center.
It didn't work out for them, clearly, but it also isn't working out too well for the Ducks right now. After losing Kreider for free, they have $15.5 million to re-sign Gauthier, and there's no telling if that will even be enough to get it done.
The mullet, goatee and oversized suits made him instantly recognizable, but it was Melrose’s voice—and the unmistakable personality behind it—that made him one of hockey’s most memorable figures.
The former NHL player, coach, and beloved analyst died on Wednesday, his wife, Cindy, informed ESPN’s Steve Levy. He was 70.
“For decades, Barry Melrose was one of the most distinctive and trusted voices in hockey,” ESPN said in a statement. “His knowledge of the game was deep, his candor was refreshing, and his passion was unmistakable.”
Melrose stepped away from broadcasting in 2023 after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. At the time, Wayne Gretzky described him as being “bigger than any team,” a fitting reflection of the impact Melrose had beyond the bench or broadcast booth.
His path to becoming a television personality was anything but conventional.
Melrose grew up in Kelvington, Saskatchewan, and began his professional career with the Cincinnati Stingers of the World Hockey Association in 1976. He spent three seasons with the club, including one alongside a young Mark Messier, before moving to the NHL following the WHA’s collapse.
He played for Winnipeg, Toronto and Detroit, finishing his NHL career after the 1985-86 season with 10 goals and 33 points in 300 regular-season games.
Melrose subsequently turned his career to coaching.
After leading the Adirondack Red Wings to a Calder Cup championship in 1992, Melrose was hired by the Los Angeles Kings. In his first season behind the bench, he guided a Gretzky-led Los Angeles team on an unforgettable playoff run that ended in the Stanley Cup Final against Montreal.
The Kings ultimately fell in five games, but Melrose had established himself as one of hockey’s most colorful coaches.
Broadcasting eventually became his defining role. He joined ESPN in 1996 and became a fixture on the network’s hockey coverage, briefly leaving television in 2008-09 to coach the Tampa Bay Lightning before returning to the booth.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman remembered Melrose as someone who could make people love the sport simply by talking about it.
“His passion was unmistakable,” Bettman said, praising Melrose’s ability to bring humor, personality and genuine enthusiasm to the game.
That may be Melrose’s lasting legacy: He never simply analyzed hockey.
Former Winnipeg Jets defenceman, NHL coach and longtime ESPN analyst Barry Melrose has died at the age of 70 following a battle with Parkinson’s disease.
Melrose was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2023, prompting his retirement from broadcasting after more than 25 years with ESPN.
A native of Kelvington, Sask., Melrose broke into the NHL in his Canadian prairies, suiting up in parts of two seasons with the Jets during his playing career.
Photo by Kim Klement/USA Today
The rugged defenceman went on to appear in 300 NHL games between Winnipeg, the Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings, recording 10 goals and 33 points while accumulating 728 penalty minutes. Before joining the NHL, Melrose also played three seasons in the World Hockey Association with the Cincinnati Stingers.
"The Winnipeg Jets and True North Sports + Entertainment are saddened to hear of the passing of Jets alumni Barry Melrose," the team said in a statement. "Our deepest condolences go out to all of Barry's family and friends across the National Hockey League."
While Melrose enjoyed an 11-year professional playing career, his greatest impact on the sport came after hanging up his skates.
He began coaching in 1987 and immediately guided the Medicine Hat Tigers to a Memorial Cup championship. After stops with the Seattle Thunderbirds and AHL's Adirondack Red Wings, Melrose was hired as head coach of the Los Angeles Kings in 1992.
In his first season behind the Kings' bench, Melrose coached a Wayne Gretzky-led Los Angeles squad to the 1993 Stanley Cup Final, where it fell to the Montreal Canadiens in five games.
Melrose later became one of hockey's most recognizable television personalities after joining ESPN in 1996. With his trademark mullet, colourful suits and unmistakable personality, he remained a fixture of the network's NHL coverage for nearly three decades.
"From the flowing locks of his distinctive mullet to the flared lapels of his trademark long suit coats, Barry Melrose cut an unmistakable figure whenever you were fortunate enough to run into him at a rink or catch him on your television screen," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement.
"You were even more fortunate if you engaged him in conversation or listened to his analysis, because he never failed to boost your love of the game of hockey."
Bettman described Melrose as a "hockey original," offering condolences to his wife, Cindy, sons Tyrell and Adrien and his many friends and colleagues throughout the sport.
Melrose briefly left ESPN in 2008 for another opportunity behind an NHL bench, coaching 16 games with the Tampa Bay Lightning before eventually returning to the network.
Between playing, coaching and broadcasting, the Saskatchewan product spent five decades as one of hockey's most colourful personalities.
"We mourn the passing of a hockey original," Bettman said.
Braeden Bowman knows how quickly things can change in the NHL.
One minute, he was an unheralded prospect in the Vegas Golden Knights’ system. The next, he was skating on the top line alongside Jack Eichel, taking reps on the top power-play unit and showing he belonged in the greatest hockey league in the world.
Now comes the hard part.
Nothing is guaranteed in the NHL, and Bowman knows that better than most. He got his opportunity last season. What he wants now is to make sure it wasn’t a one-time thing.
The undrafted forward from Kitchener, Ontario, went from a relatively unknown name in Vegas’ development system to an NHL regular in a matter of weeks. But Bowman isn’t interested in simply making a cameo.
He wants to make the NHL his permanent home.
“That’s my goal, to become a full-time player with the Knights,” Bowman said Tuesday at the team’s annual golf classic at TPC Summerlin, via the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Danny Webster. “I’m excited. The team’s looking really good again. Vegas always has a strong team, so I’m just trying to establish my identity on the team and we’ll see where it goes.”
Bowman, 23, received his first NHL call-up after captain Mark Stone broke his finger and missed roughly a month of action.
He didn’t waste the opportunity.
Bowman scored five goals and 11 points in his first 15 NHL games, quickly earning the trust of the coaching staff and opportunities in some of the most valuable minutes a player can receive.
For an undrafted player, it was about as good of an introduction to the NHL as he could have imagined.
But the NHL has a way of humbling everyone eventually.
After his blistering start, Bowman’s production cooled in the second half of the season, as he recorded just 15 points after that point.
He has the talent and the skill. Now he needs to learn how to handle the demands of an 84-game NHL season and, perhaps more importantly, how to maintain the level that initially earned him a spot on one of the best teams in the NHL.
Now he enters the season with something he didn’t have when he first received that call-up: experience.
And he knows the opportunity is waiting for him again.
The question isn’t whether Bowman can play in the NHL. He already proved he can.
Now, can he prove he can do it every night?
That’s the next step for Bowman.
And the sky is the limit. Imagine if Bowman has a breakout campaign. With a cap hit of just $875,000 through the end of this season, he could end up being one of the biggest steals for the Golden Knights.
On Wednesday night, the hockey world lost a Hall of Fame human being when Barry Melrose passed away at the age of 70. For as important as he was to the game of hockey at the rink, he was equally as important away from it. The way he loved the game was infectious.
Melrose was a player, coach, and legendary broadcaster for most of his life. As an NHL player, he played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets, and Detroit Red Wings. Melrose, a defensive defenseman, scored 10 goals and 23 assists for 33 points in 300 career games.
Before that, Melrose spent time playing for the Cincinnati Stingers of the WHA. He also had stints in the AHL during and after his NHL career. Once his playing days ended, he made a name for himself as a coach with the Los Angeles Kings and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Melrose really captured the hearts of hockey fans through his career in broadcasting. In 1995, Melrose joined ESPN on a permanent basis as a color commentator. He was also a frequent contributor to NHL Network.
His stint as the Lightning head coach came in the middle of his broadcasting career, but it was short-lived. He returned to ESPN on January 1st, 2009, so he could cover the Winter Classic between the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks at Wrigley Field.
He would continue his broadcasting career all the way through 2023, when he retired so he could spend more time with his family following a Parkinson's disease diagnosis.
Speaking of the Blackhawks, Melrose played against them as a player more than any other team. 23 of his 300 NHL games came against them, just edging out the Blues, who he played against 22 times.
1 of his 10 career goals came against the Blackhawks, as well. While he was playing for the Maple Leafs, he scored a goal on Tony Esposito on March 22nd, 1982. Stew Gavin assisted on the goal. On the same day came one of Melrose's 23 assists as well, as he helped set up a goal scored by Rocky Saganiuk.
Melrose had three total points against the Blackhawks in his career. The third was an assist almost a year to the day later, on March 20th, 1983. Melrose assisted on a goal scored by Peter Ihnacak against Murray Bannerman.
It is never easy to say goodbye to someone like Barry Melrose, but it is easy to think about how much good he did for the game we love. Cooler than cool.
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It's been reported for quite some time now that the St. Louis Blues have serious interest in acquiring Carolina Hurricanes defenseman and current RFA Alexander Nikishin.
The 24-year-old completed his rookie season, helping the Hurricanes win the Stanley Cup. With the stacked Hurricanes blueline, the organization is pondering the idea of trading Nikishin rather than signing him to a contract. While the Blues' interest is notable, with pre-season beginning in just nine days, the likelihood of a deal progressing before the season starts continues to shrink.
But if the Blues are keen on adding a left-handed defenseman, they could turn their attention toward Mason Lohrei of the Boston Bruins.
Lohrei would be cheaper to acquire and more affordable under the salary cap ($3.2 million AAV), but he is a slightly lesser player. Despite that, Lohrei has played 191 games in the NHL, boasts a 6-foot-5 frame, and has strong two-way defenseman traits.
Last year, Lohrei posted seven goals and 26 points in 73 games, and in 2024-25, he notched five goals and 33 points in 77 games. But the 25-year-old began to lose his spot in the pecking order as the season wore on. His ice time dropped to 16:54 from the 19:32 he averaged the year prior.
The Blues, on the other hand, are looking to beef up their left side. Currently, their left-handed defensemen feature Philip Broberg, Cam Fowler, Tyler Tucker, and Theo Lindstein. Broberg is the team's No. 1 defenseman, but after that, there are some question marks. Fowler struggled during the 2025-26 season and looked more comfortable in a third-pairing role. Tucker hasn't really emerged as anything more than a bottom-pairing defenseman. Lindstein is also still just 21 years old, and the organization could feel that additional time in the AHL is needed.
With those question marks, it's clear why GM Alexander Steen is monitoring the defense market, specifically NHL-established defensemen around 25 years old.
Lohrei, like Nikishin, would be an excellent fit behind Broberg now and in the future. His size is enticing; add that he is a capable puck mover and offensive threat, and he fits the Blues system perfectly. He showed strong skating results in 2025-26, landing in the 66th percentile in max skating speed, according to NHL EDGE.
Marginal rumors have linked the Blues and Lohrei at this time, but if the need for a defenseman grows, Lohrei fits the bill.
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The 2026-27 NHL season continues to approach, with the New York Islanders' regular season opener in just 20 days, less than three full weeks.
Right now, the biggest story entering camp surrounds Victor Eklund and whether or not he's going to make the team, and how big of an impact he's going to have if and when he does break through with the NHL squad.
However, with just days until training camps open, Elliotte Friedman dropped something of a bombshell with the Islanders, reporting that New York is "around that," referring to Kirill Marchenko's reported availability as a trade chip with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Friedman says #Isles have been “around that” referring to #CBJ Marchenko.
Marchenko, 26, posted 27 goals and 67 points in 76 games across the 2025-26 season as Columbus' top forward.
Marchenko's broken out in the last two seasons and has become something of a star in the NHL. In 2024-25, Marchenko scored 31 goals and 74 points in 79 games.
This past summer at the 2026 NHL Draft, reports emerged that Marchenko informed Columbus he would not sign an extension following the 2026-27 season, with Marchenko set to be a restricted free agent just one year away from becoming an unrestricted free agent.
So while Columbus doesn't have immediate pressure to trade him away, if they don't, Marchenko could sign his qualifying offer and then simply walk to unrestricted free agency the following summer.
That's where the Islanders come into play. This past summer, fans have clamored for the Islanders to get involved with available players such as Jordan Kyrou and Alex Tuch, both of whom landed with the Washington Capitals.
There's a difference between those two and Marchenko.
First, Tuch is older than Marchenko, sitting at age 30, and soon to be past his prime. The Islanders are viewing this year as a transition year, and the contention window with Matthew Schaefer hasn't fully opened yet.
Optimistically, that window could open in one-to-two years. If Kyrou or Tuch were here, they'd both be 30 or older, with Kyrou currently 28 and showing signs of inconsistency.
Marchenko, however, at 26, is much younger. He's also played less NHL games than both, meaning less wear-and-tear. And, if the true window of contention opens in two years, well all of a sudden, Marchenko is 28 and at the height of powers.
It's a perfect fit for balancing wanting to compete this year, but keeping one eye on the future.
The cost of acquisition for Marchenko will be high, but the closer it gets to July 1 next year, that price will drop.
Nobody thinks a deal is imminent, which also helps the Islanders. They've been transparently against trading any of their top prospects.
This season represents their first full year with the vast majority of all their top guys playing in the organization, allowing for further thorough evaluation, and thus making it easier to trade one away if it comes to it.
Columbus also likely won't want to rebuild, and will be looking for guys to win-now. So it could cost guys on the NHL roster, too.
For now, the most notable thing is that the Islanders are actively involved in Marchenko.
The big takeaway is showing what type of player will fit into the Schaefer window, and who won't.
The Columbus Blue Jackets have released their 2026 NHL Prospect Tournament roster and a complete tournament schedule for the event, held from Saturday, Sept. 12 to Tuesday, Sept.15 at BELFOR Training Center inside Little Caesars Arena.
Per the CBJ PR release:
"The Blue Jackets will be coached in Detroit by Nick Bootland, head coach of the Cleveland Monsters, the club's American Hockey League affiliate. The rookie camp roster features 23 players, including 11 that were selected by the team via the NHL Draft. Competing for the first time as Blue Jackets are three picks from the 2026 NHL Draft – center Alessandro Di Iorio (94th overall), goaltender Parker Snell (142nd overall) and left wing Filip Novak (206th overall). Other drafted players scheduled to participate in the tournament include: 2025 – C Owen Griffin; 2024 – D Charlie Elick, G Evan Gardner, D Luca Marrelli; 2023 – C Luca Pinelli, C Oiva Keskinen; 2022 – RW Jordan Dumais; 2021 – D Guillaume Richard."
"The roster also features six players who signed entry level contracts with the club: F Josh Eernisse and D Boston Buckberger in 2026, D Caleb MacDonald and RW Jack Williams in 2025, LW Max McCue in 2024, and G Nolan Lalonde in 2022."
2026 NHL PROSPECT TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Saturday, September 12th - 3:00 p.m. - Columbus vs. Pittsburgh - BELFOR Training Center
Sunday, September 13th - 3:30 p.m. - Dallas vs. Columbus - BELFOR Training Center
Monday, September 14th - TBD
Tuesday, September 15th - 2:00 p.m. - Detroit vs. Columbus - BELFOR Training Center
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On Thursday, new reports came out from Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman on a new episode of his podcast, 32 Thoughts. The NHL insider touched on many topics around the league, including the Detroit Red Wings and their contract situation with restricted free agent Simon Edvinsson.
Friedman started off by explaining that the situation is certainly unique, with Detroit currently without a general manager. But he noted that when it comes to new deals shaping the market for defensemen, it isn't just Cale Makar's massive eight-year, $163.2 million extension making waves.
The eight-year, $75.04 million extension recently signed by 20-year-old Vancouver Canucks defenseman Zeev Buium, carrying a $9.38 million annual cap hit, is also worth watching closely.
Friedman explained that Buium's contract could play a role in shaping negotiations for young defensemen like Edvinsson, and could see the former sixth-overall pick land a bigger deal than expected at the start of the summer.
Buium has just 76 career NHL games and 26 points on his resume, numbers that stack up closely against Edvinsson's 25 points in 72 games last season, giving Edvinsson's camp a fresh comparison point to lean on in negotiations, even with Detroit still searching for its next GM.
Reports have suggested that Edvinsson has remained committed to the Red Wings and has been waiting for the club's GM search to play out, with no interest in creating any drama. He's expected to join the Red Wings at training camp regardless of where those talks stand.
Edvinsson is coming off his second straight 25-plus point season and took on a bigger role a year ago, playing over 22 minutes a night and finishing at plus-12 on the season, matching his rating from his rookie campaign.
Missing ten games due to injury likely cost him a shot at reaching the 30-point mark for a second straight season, but there's no denying Edvinsson has flashed real upside at a young age, and the Red Wings would love to get a new deal worked out.
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Hockey is back, at long last, and the Anaheim Ducks will be holding their very brief 2026 rookie camp at the end of this week, followed by their participation in the 2026 Rookie Faceoff. The Rookie Faceoff will be hosted by the San Jose Sharks and feature six teams who will play a total of seven games. The Sharks and Ducks will be joined by rookies from the Colorado Avalanche, Los Angeles Kings, Utah Mammoth, and Vegas Golden Knights organizations.
The Ducks rookies will only be on the ice together on Friday at 10 am (open to the public, free of charge) before they’ll head to Northern California. They’ll play two games against rookies from the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday at 1 pm PST and the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday at 3 pm PST.
Rookie camp, along with training camp and preseason, will be compressed in 2026-27 and beyond, as the NHL shifts to an 84-game regular season schedule. Still, plenty of storylines remain as one evaluates the 13 forwards, 7 defensemen, and two goaltenders invited to the weekend-long rookie event ahead of a crucial 2026 training camp for the Anaheim Ducks.
Here are the three storylines that most stand out:
Top Picks: Ready or Rushing?
With the way the 2026 offseason played out for the Ducks (and will continue to play out), the Ducks will likely have to navigate a top-heavy depth chart and payroll as they attempt to advance into their true contending window. That means they’re going to have to rely on general manager Pat Verbeek signing useful veterans to bargain deals and young players to have significant impacts quickly.
Addressing the latter, the Ducks are going to have to enter the 2026-27 season with top-six forward Troy Terry on LTIR and having moved on from veteran forward Chris Kreider to fit in star forward Cutter Gauthier’s incoming AAV, leaving depth scoring a monumental question mark.
Anaheim’s top two prospects are Roger McQueen (10th overall in 2025) and Nikita Klepov (15th in ’26), and these camps could be an opportunity for either or both to make the Ducks’ opening night roster and begin contributing immediately.
McQueen’s ELC will kick in this season regardless of whether he plays with the San Diego Gulls or in Anaheim. He has an NHL-ready frame as well as NHL-ready skill and has developed pro habits while playing in the NCAA with Providence College in 2025-26. However, he hasn’t played much hockey (63 games between the WHL, NCAA, and AHL) in the last two calendar years, and despite a need at his position, inserting him into the NHL right away may ultimately hinder his offensive development, an area where his true potential lies and where he hasn’t had the freedom to explore of late.
When Klepov was drafted, Verbeek stated he may be on a “fast track” to the NHL. He was set to transition to the NCAA for the 2026-27 season, but the Ducks, instead, signed him to his ELC. He’ll now either play in the NHL or OHL this season. He led the OHL in scoring a year ago, so one may be inclined to believe he doesn’t have much to gain at that level anymore. However skilled, smart, and tenacious he is (and he is those things), he has some work to do to add to his 6-foot, 186-pound frame and learn how to translate what makes him a successful forward to the NHL level.
Swedish Forwards Make the Jump to North America
In the tier below McQueen and Klepov on the Ducks prospect rankings sits a trio of recently drafted Swedish forwards who are making the transition from the Swedish pro/junior hockey circuit to North America. Two are projected to play their first full seasons in the AHL with the San Diego Gulls, and one is expected to play in the OHL.
Lucas Pettersson (35th in ’24) and Herman Traff (91st in ’24) will play their D+3 seasons in the AHL after ending their 2025-26 campaigns by getting a taste of the level with the Gulls. They’ve each competed against men for the past two seasons and have developed pro-ready habits. Their next challenge will be to adjust to the size of the North American rinks and the stride-to-stride speed it produces.
As the Ducks transition to the next phase of their build, they’ll soon see the departures of another layer of veterans (Frank Vatrano, Mikael Granlund, Alex Killorn). Players like Pettersson and Traff will be counted on to hit the ground running in the next couple of years to stabilize the depth of the Ducks’ future forward group.
Marcus Nordmark (28th in ’26) is a supremely talented project winger the Ducks selected with their second first-round pick acquired from the St. Louis Blues in exchange for Mason McTavish on draft night. His areas of improvement include effort and consistency, both aspects he can address in the OHL while getting acclimated to a new culture and play style.
Nordmark wasn’t able to participate on the ice during Ducks development camp in July due to injury, so it will be the first opportunity for many in the Ducks’ coaching staff, development staff, and front office to see him play in person.
Future in Net
The Ducks rookie camp will feature two of the organization’s six goaltenders currently in North America and the two projected to receive the majority of the starts for the San Diego Gulls in the AHL: Tomas Suchanek and Damian Clara.
Clara (21) has the higher upside of the two and is the goaltender the Ducks have invested the most in since drafting John Gibson in 2011. This will be his first full season in North America since the Ducks drafted him in the second round three years ago (60th in ’23). He spent the three seasons since playing in the SHL, Liiga, and HockeyAllsvenskan.
Clara made a name for himself representing his native Italy at the 2026 Olympic Games, and despite his squad failing to win a game, he kept the team in front of him within striking distance against some of the best hockey countries in the world.
His athleticism is off the charts, but he will need to refine the intricacies of angling and managing a fast game from within the blue paint.
Suchanek (23) had a strong rookie season in the AHL in 2023-24, but missed the entire 2024-25 season with an injury and struggled mightily in 2025-26, splitting the year between the AHL and ECHL.
Both Ville Husso and Laurent Brosssoit will see their contracts expire after the upcoming season, and it seems that thereafter, the backup role behind Lukas Dostal will be up for grabs. A good rookie camp, followed by a good training camp, can give either Clara or Suchanek the early edge in that particular position battle.
