The Utah Mammoth will have a familiar face watching from afar for much of the upcoming season.
Former Mammoth forward Nick Bjugstad is expected to miss four to six months after undergoing surgery last week to repair a torn left pectoral muscle, the New Jersey Devils announced Thursday as NHL training camps begin to ramp up.
Bjugstad sustained the injury during the offseason, putting a significant dent in his first season with New Jersey before he even had an opportunity to get back on the ice. The 33-year-old joined the Devils at the trade deadline last season after being acquired from the St. Louis Blues.
Before that move, however, Bjugstad spent the 2024-25 season with Utah, appearing in 66 games and recording eight goals and 11 assists for 19 points.
His time in Utah represented another chapter in a lengthy NHL career for the 6-foot-6 forward, who was originally selected 19th overall by the Florida Panthers in the 2010 NHL Draft. Bjugstad has since suited up for eight organizations, including the Panthers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Minnesota Wild, Arizona Coyotes, Edmonton Oilers, Utah, St. Louis and New Jersey.
Across 821 career games, he has accumulated 163 goals and 339 points.
Bjugstad reached the 20-goal mark twice in his career, including a 22-goal campaign with Arizona in 2023-24, while his most productive season came in 2017-18 when he established career highs with 19 goals, 30 assists and 49 points in Florida.
His offensive production has dipped considerably in recent years, though, with only 14 goals over the span following his 22-goal season. Last year was particularly difficult, as he managed six goals and nine points in 61 games between St. Louis and New Jersey after posting 19 points in Utah.
The Hockey News wishes Bjugstad a safe and successful recovery. After working to prepare for another NHL season, the veteran forward undoubtedly hopes to put this setback behind him and return to the ice as soon as his recovery allows.
The first day of the Toronto Maple Leafs training camp has concluded, and head coach Jim Hiller is very pleased with how a number of his players performed and worked.
Toronto's bench boss revealed that one player who really caught his attention was 21-year-old Easton Cowan. Cowan, who was positioned on the right wing next to Colton Sissons and Nick Paul, was all over the ice in Hiller's eyes.
"If I just had to say 'who was the player that just jumped out at you in this morning's session,' to me it would be Easton Cowan," Hiller said. "He makes some plays with the puck, but he was a puck hound. He was everywhere, I thought."
Cowan is entering his sophomore year in the NHL. Last season, he recorded 11 goals and 29 points in 66 games, averaging 14:43 of ice time per game.
Coming into the league, he was seen as a playmaking forward, especially from his days with the OHL's London Knights, winning two OHL titles, a Memorial Cup, and collecting MVP awards in both the regular season and playoffs.
But with a year under his belt with the Maple Leafs to this point, he's providing another dimension to his game.
"We talked to him about that," the bench boss said. "He's got tremendous skill, but where he can help us best is be a puck hound and then use that skill. And to me, he was all over the ice."
Hiller later added who stood out to him from the second group on Thursday. The second group was mainly filled with players from the AHL's Toronto Marlies.
"I thought Groulx, Lettieri and Mermis," he listed as three that impressed him. "Those three were so dialled in and worked so hard and were complete pros out there. That's really what jumped out of me. And it wasn't one, it was all three of those guys. I was like, wow, did they set the tone for this group. So you hope it goes that way, but you never know. So those three in the second."
Groulx and Mermis both featured for the Leafs last season.
Groulx played 13 games for the Maple Leafs last season, registering three goals and five points. Mermis featured in 11 appearances, providing one assist.
Lettieri hasn't featured in the NHL for Toronto yet, but he led the American League in scoring during the Calder Cup playoffs. He scored 11 goals and 26 points for the Marlies in that run.
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Sam Malinski has already taken another significant step in his development with the Colorado Avalanche, but standing still does not appear to be an option.
After establishing himself as a full-time NHL defenseman for a second consecutive season and playing all 82 games last year, Malinski arrived at training camp with a simple objective: keep getting better.
“I think there's still a lot of room to grow in my game,” Malinski said Thursday while speaking to Guerilla Sports' Jesse Montano. “So I definitely still have that hunger to just keep getting better.”
The numbers suggest just how much progress Malinski made last season. After recording five goals and 10 assists for 15 points in 76 games during his first full-time season with Colorado, he exploded for eight goals and 32 assists and finished with 40 points in all 82 games last year.
Yet Malinski isn't approaching this season as though he has figured everything out.
His offseason included roughly a month away from hockey, giving him time to return home to Minnesota, reconnect with family, watch his young nephews run around and get out on the golf course before eventually returning to training. Once the work resumed, the focus shifted toward continuing to develop the tools that have helped him become an increasingly dependable part of Colorado’s blue line.
There is an interesting contrast to Malinski's game. The Cornell product has the skating and puck-moving ability to create offense from the back end, including a willingness to walk the blue line and wait patiently for a shooting lane. Reminiscent of fellow Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar, the shrewd Malinski can shimmy across the ice, subtly shifting his angle before unleashing a wicked wrister toward the net. His 40-point season demonstrated that his offensive game is no longer merely an intriguing part of his potential.
His 40-point season demonstrated that his offensive game is no longer merely an intriguing part of his potential.
Now, the emphasis at camp is on the other side of the puck.
“You go the whole summer and you work on a lot of skill stuff and shooting and all that,” Malinski said. “So just trying to dial in the little habits of, you know, going back for pucks and defending guys.”
That attention to detail has become a recurring theme in Malinski's development. Rather than point to one secret behind his improvement, he has previously credited the Avalanche's veteran room for showing him how NHL players maintain themselves over an entire season.
He has paid close attention to what his teammates do, from recovery routines to the daily habits that allow veteran players to remain effective over the course of an NHL season. Brent Burns, in particular, caught his attention last year.
For a player who attended an Ivy League institution like Cornell University, there has always been something distinctive about Malinski's willingness—and ability—to learn from virtually everyone around him. His curiosity has become just as important to his development as his skill set, allowing him to absorb lessons from teammates who have already navigated the challenges he is now facing.
That mentality remains intact as he enters another season.
“I don't think I need to treat it a whole lot different,” Malinski said.
The production has already improved dramatically. Now Malinski is looking for the next layer of his game.
On Wednesday, long-time NHLer and Minnesota Wild enforcer Ryan Reaves announced his retirement from hockey with a social media post.
In his Instagram post, the 39-year-old shared his love for the sport and what it meant to him.
Reaves played 16 NHL seasons, scoring 66 goals and 140 points in 962 games. Reaves spent just one season with the Wild, but he made his mark on the fans and organization as a positive personality. As an enforcer, Reaves wasn't lighting it up offensively, but teammates constantly raved about his energy and his ability to stand up for them on the ice.
In his season with the Wild, Reaves recorded 31 penalty minutes and 1,137 across his NHL career.
"I never thought this day would come. I thought I was invincible. I thought I could play forever, but like all good things, it must come to an end," Reaves wrote in his retirement post.
"Today, I retire from the sport I’ve loved since I was 5 years old. It was a hell of a ride. Thank you to everyone who supported me throughout this journey. I may not be on the ice anymore, but I know I will always be close to hockey in one way or another. You can rest easy knowing the corners are a little safer today," he added.
Reaves didn't win any hardware and fell just short of the 1,000-game mark, but he will be remembered for his physical style and the impact his personality had on the NHL.
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Over the past two years, the Panthers’ logo has featured the inner bowl of the Stanley Cup, signifying the team’s back-to-back championships in 2024 and 2025.
Now that they’re not the NHL’s defending champs anymore, it’s no longer appropriate to use the league’s historic trophy as part of Florida’s home ice logo.
Florida decision makers did not want to go back to a traditional-looking paint job at center ice, though.
Instead, the Panthers elected to fill the complete circle again, but this time they used Florida’s primary Panthers-head logo and a very cool looking red background with blue horizontal stripes.
The Panthers posted a photo of how the ice looks with its fresh paint job, and the new center ice logo absolutely pops.
Let us know what you think of the new logo in the comments below.
Dylan Larkin would not say if he has rescinded his trade request, but he has spoken to his Red Wings teamamtes about the situation.
Asked what triggered the request, Larkin said, "There's a lot there. A lot of personal stuff. To be honest with you − I'm going to try and be honest with you guys today. And that's as far as I'll go on that.
"I understand that there's answers that fans and people that care about this organization around the world want to know. But I'm really not ready to go there. It's maybe something that I may never be. And it wasn't easy to get to that decision. It was very hard. It wasn't a spur of the moment thing."
Larkin, who lost his captaincy, didn't take part in practice because of his upper-body injury. - Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press
Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff said no doors are closed on suspended Connor Hellebuyck returning to the team but, "at the end of the day, that will be his choice."
Hellebuyck was suspended after not appearing at a team function on Wednesday. The GM said he will continue to explore trade talks but there is no deadline for getting it done.
"We've been trying to make trades that work for both sides for a long time and will continue to do that," he said.
Cheveldayoff said he hasn't received an offer that's commensurate with a goalie of the caliber of Hellebuyck, who has won three Vezina trophies, a Hart Trophy and an Olympic gold medal.
Stan Bowman spent more than 30 minutes answering questions Wednesday, and much of that time was spent discussing a decision the Edmonton Oilers knew would anger part of their fan base.
Alex Formenton signed a one-year, $850,000 contract with Edmonton earlier this month, and a petition calling for the Oilers to terminate that contract has since collected more than 65,000 signatures. Bowman said Wednesday that the reaction was considered before the organization made the signing.
“Yeah, I would say we knew going into it that this was something that wasn't going to be universally accepted or embraced,” Bowman said.
The Oilers considered the reaction and signed Formenton anyway. Bowman said the organization spent significant time looking into the situation before reaching a point where it was comfortable offering him a contract.
“I understand that people are going to view it differently, and that's okay,” Bowman said. “That's one of the things that I'm a big believer in: that we don't all have to agree on everything here, and people are entitled to their opinions and have strong feelings on it.”
Underneath everything that has followed since the signing, a decision about Formenton's on-ice performance remains at the heart of the issue, and the Oilers seem to believe Formenton can be part of their plans for future success.
His last NHL season was in 2021-22 with the Ottawa Senators, when he scored 18 goals and 32 points in 79 games. He has since spent the past three seasons playing in Switzerland and now returns to the NHL at 27, with probably his only chance to revive his NHL career.
“We also knew that it is something that is a polarizing topic, and that's why we did spend as much time looking into it to get us to the point where we do feel comfortable,” Bowman said. “Alex is member of our team. He's going to be, and we believe that he's going to be an asset to our team, on the ice, but also as a teammate.”
The Oilers also considered the years that have passed since the 2018 incident. Formenton and the four other former Canadian world junior players charged in the case were acquitted in July 2025, and Bowman said his conversations with Formenton played a role in Edmonton's decision.
“You know, I've had a lot of conversations with Alex, and you know, he's grown a lot in the intervening years, from where he was then to where he is now, and he's shown that growth,” Bowman said.
That belief will be tested during Formenton's time in Edmonton because the organization has attached its own reputation to the decision. Bowman said the Oilers believe in the person they signed and expect him to contribute as a teammate, leaving Formenton's conduct within the organization as part of how the signing will eventually be viewed.
More than 65,000 signatures on a petition to terminate Formenton's contract represent substantial opposition to the signing, and Bowman acknowledged Wednesday that some people may also be tired of Edmonton becoming associated with second chances.
“That's understandable,” Bowman said. “I think each person is going to have to navigate that the way that feels right to them. It's not for me to say whether they should or shouldn't feel a certain way.”
It's worth acknowledging the size of the market the Oilers operate in. The truth is, no matter how upset a portion of Oil Country becomes, Rogers Place will still be full every night. Attendance won't tell us much about whether the feelings that are so loud now will change.
Some fans will eventually stop talking about the signing, while others signed that petition because the issue matters enough to affect how they view the organization, and Formenton's performance won't necessarily change that.
Bowman understands personally how Edmonton responds to an organization willing to offer another opportunity. He referenced his own experience on Wednesday when discussing the support he has received since becoming general manager.
“It is a privilege to be here working in this city for these fans here,” Bowman said. “I've been blown away by the support that the fans show to the team here.
“So you want to do right by the community, and you want to make people proud of you,” Bowman said. “I think that's really maybe the message I would say is we're trying to do the right thing and give us a chance to make them proud and be judged on what we do moving forward here.”
Because Formenton is on a one-year contract, the Oilers have only this season to see what whether it was worth it. His performance in the Swiss League and the NHL are not all-star nurmbers, and Bowman's comments indicate they expect something from him as a teammate as well.
The reaction from fans was something Edmonton was willing to accepted when they signed Formenton. More than 65,000 people have now put their names in support of the opposite, leaving the Oilers to spend much of this season deciding what Formenton provides after four years away from the NHL and whether he has a future with the organization at all.
Training camp is going to look a little different for the Florida Panthers this month than it has in past years.
That’s what will happen when you combine a longer-than-usual offseason and an abbreviated training camp and preseason schedule.
This year was the first over the past five that the Panthers did not play hockey until at least late May. They reached the second round during the 2022 playoffs and then played in the Stanley Cup Final in 2023, 2024 and 2025, winning championships during the latter two trips.
Now the Cats are entering a new season after not making playoffs for the first time since 2019, and they’re doing it in a year where the regular season is two games longer and training camp and the preseason have been cut shorter.
“There is no team in the league that's gone through what the teams will go through,” Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice said Wednesday. “This is the shortest camp that I'll have ever been a part of. Fewest number of exhibition games, mandates on the number of games guys can play, veterans can play, so we have to learn real fast what the right (process will be).”
Maurice explained that he plans to change the way he handles his players during camp, now choosing to work his veterans early in the preseason instead of holding them back longer.
He also wants to get into the regular season meetings and preparation sooner rather than later, and this new way of running his veterans lends into that mindset.
“The longer you keep your teams in split groups, you can't work your special teams because you've got power plays on two different surfaces against different killers,” Maurice said. “It's not right, so we're going to run hard early with those, and then shut them down, and look at the last six days of training camp as a between series break in the playoffs. We’ll go right to special teams and things that we usually push till much later in the camp. But what we're doing with the new guys is exactly what we're doing with the veterans. If every player in this training camp had played for us last year, we’re going right back to basics, right back to the simplest things we do, the hardest things we do, and we're starting there. So, for the new guys, this is a great time to come here because we're starting with day one video.”
Considering the long offseason, the consensus from Panthers players this week has been that they just wanted to hit the ice and get started.
Regardless of how long or short training camp ends up, Maurice’s guys feel they’ll be ready when the games start to count.
“It doesn't matter,” said Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad. “There could be a three-day training camp, and we'll get ourselves prepared.”
Florida’s first official training camp practice started at 10 a.m. on Thursday.
They’ll run a few days of practices before getting into their four-game preseason schedule, which will take place over a seven-day span starting on Sunday against the Carolina Hurricanes.
“I think it's a unique experience for everybody,” said Panthers forward Brady Tkachuk. “Everybody's got to go through that shorter camp than what we've expected and what we've gone through in the past.”
With Maurice planning to push his veteran players harder during the early stages of camp, it will be interesting to see how they respond to the workload.
Last year, when Florida brought over 20 more players to their camp than this year (72 to 51), Maurice held his veterans back during the first days, abbreviating their exposure with such a large group and essentially giving them a preview of what this year’s shorter camp could be like.
“Once you start, the only thing that probably changes is you're probably able to do a little bit more on ice, get those reps in at a higher pace, as opposed to getting your rest as much as possible,” said Panthers forward Sam Reinhart. “The shorter training camp is something everyone's going through. It’s something that’s not really new to us; we tried it out a little bit last year. The quicker you can feel up to your best and get that pace high and intensity high, the better off you'll be.”
It certainly helps that many of Florida’s veteran players, including Ekblad, Reinhart, the Tkachuk brothers and Panthers captain Sasha Barkov, have all be taking part in informal workouts at the team’s practice rink in Fort Lauderdale over the past several weeks.
Sometimes working with skills coaches, sometimes setting their own pace and drills, the players have been ramping themselves up in anticipation of hitting the ground running when Opening Night arrives at the end of the month.
That’s why for some, the shorter training camp doesn’t feel like much of a difference.
“I still think training camp is too long, but that's maybe just me,” said Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk. “Guys have been here since like August 20th. Maybe we haven't been doing Paul's skates at the end of practice, but they've still been hard. Everybody's still pulling the rope the same way right now. Guys are in the weight room all day. We've been at this for at least a few weeks now, so I don't think we should have an issue once camp starts, once the season starts.”
Ultimately, the plan for camp is something that Maurice and his staff worked and tinkered with throughout the summer.
It’s a process that started immediately after last season ended, continued when the coaches and managers returned to South Florida around the NHL Draft and free agency, and finally came to fruition as the players began making their way back to Fort Lauderdale.
“One of the things I wrestled with this summer was how to tackle this,” Maurice explained. “The first one is we run a hard camp, but if you power your team for let's say 10 days, you're not right for two days after that, so it has to be a little bit more selective, but I still have to get that message across, and it still has to be hard and it has to be fast.”
Under Maurice, Florida has become one of the hardest teams to play against, combining speed, puck possession and suffocating checking.
It’s an incredibly difficult way to play on a daily basis, and it something the Panthers have strived at.
We’ll see if Maurice can keep the train moving amid the new adjustments to training camp.
“Sometimes you don't know when you tweak your drills, what's going to happen,” he said. “But we'll go real hard.”
Mar 28, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck (37) during the second period against the Colorado Avalanche at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Ron Chenoy/IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
WINNIPEG, Manitoba — The Winnipeg Jets suspended goaltender Connor Hellebuyck for failing to report to training camp.
The team said general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff would address the media. It did not specify the length of the suspension for the U.S. Olympic star.
Hellebuyck, a three-time Vezina Trophy winner and 2025 Hart Trophy winner as NHL MVP, publicly requested a trade from the team on Aug. 27.
In a statement posted on X by his agent, Ray Petkau, Hellebuyck said he had privately requested a trade “several months ago” and that he gave the organization time to address it “quietly and respectfully.”
“Winnipeg has been my home for my entire NHL career, and I will always be grateful for my time there,” Hellebuyck said. “I have never forgotten June 23, 2012. That’s the day Winnipeg took a chance on a goalie playing in Odessa, Texas. I gave everything I had from that moment to prove that the Jets made the right decision.”
Cheveldayoff had said before June’s NHL draft that he was listening to offers for Hellebuyck. At the time, he did not confirm that the goaltender had asked to be traded.
Apr 16, 2026; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Los Angeles Kings defenseman Drew Doughty (8) against the Calgary Flames during the second period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
Sergei Belski/IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Drew Doughty was named captain of the Los Angeles Kings, inheriting the leadership position left vacant by Anze Kopitar’s retirement.
Doughty is the 15th captain in team history. He served as an alternate captain since 2016-17, when Kopitar replaced Dustin Brown as captain.
The 36-year-old Doughty is the franchise leader among defensemen in numerous categories, including goals, assists, points and games played and was a key piece in their Stanley Cup victories in 2012 and 2014. He will start preparations for his 19th NHL season when the Kings open training camp.
“Being named captain of an NHL team is something I’m truly honored by, and it’s something I take great pride in,” Doughty said in a statement released by the team.
The decision to elevate Doughty to the role comes less than four months after general manager Ken Holland said the Kings would not discuss a contract extension this offseason. Doughty is entering the last season of a eight-year deal he signed in June 2018, but Holland indicated he wants Doughty to finish his career with the organization.
“He’s earned the right to have a lot of say in what happens, so I’m going to work with Drew,” Holland said on June 26. “He’s not worried about an extension, I’m not worried about an extension, and let’s just get more information about where things are at before we talk about going forward after the ’26-27 season.”
Doughty had five goals and 18 assists in 72 regular-season games but was held without a point in a four-game sweep against the Colorado Avalanche. He also helped Canada reach the goal medal final at the Milan Cortina Olympics where they lost 2-1 in overtime to the United States.
The Kings are going through a major leadership transition this season, with Kopitar ending his career after spending all 20 seasons with the club, and Peter Laviolette joining the team as head coach in June following a fifth straight first-round playoff exit. They have not won a postseason series since claiming their second Stanley Cup in 2014.
Forward Adrian Kempe and defenseman Mikey Anderson will continue to serve as alternate captains, while forward Artemi Panarin adds an “A” in his first full season with the Kings after being acquired in a trade from the New York Rangers in February to round out their leadership group.
Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin is entering his 22nd season in the NHL and has a chance to set another goal-scoring record.
But the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer's opening news conference for the 2026-27 season also dealt with his appearance in a political ad for the United Russia Party, which supports president Vladimir Putin.
MultipleRussian news outlets have published images and video of the commercial showing Ovechkin, a Moscow native, standing behind Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov, a prominent figure in Putin's Kremlin and the leading parliamentary candidate for the United Russia Party. Other Russian celebrities appeared in the ad.
"They asked me to do this, and I said yes," he said at the opening of his news conference, which occurred on his 41st birthday.
He said there was no hesitiation on his part.
"I'm Russian and I support my country," he said.
He's planning to live with his family is Russia after he retires.
"I'm for peace and love and I hope everything is going to be OK," he said.
Backlash to Alex Ovechkin's appearance
Ovechkin said he heard no backlash over the ad, but there has been.
Hall of Fame goaltender Dominik Hasek, a Czechia native and frequent critic of Russia's war against Ukraine, said, "Everyone in this photograph has chosen to officially support Russia's imperialist war in Ukraine. Among them are also hockey player Ovechkin and former hockey player and national team captain (Slava) Fetisov. Because of each of them, many Ukrainians and Russians will be killed."
U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C. sent a letter to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman asking him to "clarify what policies, if any, govern the participation of active players in political advertisements or propaganda on behalf of dictatorial political parties and foreign political regimes. I further request that the League and the Capitals organization clarify any endorsement of Putin’s party is not a official position of the NHL or the Washington Capitals."
Alex Ovechkin's ties to Vladimir Putin
Ovechkin has been tied to Putin before the political ad.
The Capitals had called a news conference in February 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in which Ovechkin answered questions about the war.
"It’s a hard situation. I have lots of friends in Russia and Ukraine, and it’s hard to see the war," he told reporters. "I hope soon it’s going to be over and there’s going to be peace in the whole world."
Ovechkin was asked at the time whether he supported Putin amid the invasion.
"He’s my president but … I’m not in politics," he said. "I’m an athlete and how I said, I hope everything is going to be done soon. It’s a hard situation right now for both sides. … I'm not in control of the situation."
What the Washington Capitals said
Capitals spokesperson Sergey Kocharov provided the following statement to USA TODAY Sports
“Alex Ovechkin is a Russian citizen who lives in Moscow with his family during the offseason and will live there following his retirement. This summer, while in Russia, he was asked by his country to participate in a video campaign. As the longest-tenured athlete in Washington, D.C. and a pillar of the community, his focus and ours is on the season ahead and the continued impact he makes on the ice and in our city.”
Alex Ovechkin's 2026-27 season
Ovechkin signed a bonus-laden deal for this season. He broke Wayne Gretzky's goal record in 2025 and has a chance for another this season.
Ovechkin trails Gretzky by 10 goals when it comes to combined regular season and playoff goals (1,116). Ovechkin has scored 929 goals in the regular season and 77 in the playoffs.
Leading up to his draft year, Stramel was considered a top-10 pick, or at the very least a candidate to land in the top 10. As a late-2004 birthday, Stramel missed the cutoff for the 2022 draft and was selected by the Wild in the first round (21st overall) of the 2023 NHL draft.
His first two seasons of college hockey with the University of Wisconsin were very underwhelming, but the move to Michigan State unlocked his game. In his first season with the Spartans, his junior year, Stramel posted nine goals and 27 points in 37 games. But his senior season is when things finally came together, as the 21-year-old scored 19 goals and 44 points in 37 games.
Stramel morphed into one of the better players in college hockey and proved to the Minnesota brass that he was ready to begin his professional career.
After signing his entry-level contract, Stramel will have the opportunity to compete in training camp and pre-season to make the opening-night NHL roster. The question is whether he has the tools to play a bottom-six role, or if his skill stands out enough to warrant a spot in the top six.
If he can provide neither, he'll likely start in the AHL, but he is gunning for an NHL job.
"That’s for sure a goal of mine,” Stramel told reporters last week during the team’s prospect camp. “I’m going to have to bring it in camp and hopefully show them what I’m capable of. But at the end of the day, if it doesn’t happen right away, it doesn’t happen right away.”
There is no shame in starting in the AHL; for many prospects, it helps them acclimate to the style of play and speed they may face in the NHL. But with some of the off-season departures the Wild faced, it would be great to see a top prospect like Stramel force his way into the lineup.
Stramel has the physical tools, standing 6-foot-3 and weighing 212 pounds. His game is built on his playmaking, as he excels in small areas of the ice. His hockey IQ is arguably his greatest strength, and he uses that to be a step ahead of the game.
His ability to play on the wing or up the middle could be another valuable trait that helps him land an NHL job.
But it won't be an easy task for Stramel. If he starts on the wing, he can't beat out Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy in top-six roles, and in the bottom six, Stramel doesn't have the physicality of Yakov Trenin or Marcus Foligno to beat them. Additionally, Blake Coleman provides offense and penalty killing, and Nick Foligno is a veteran leader who also brings physicality. The two players he can truly compete with are Maxim Shabanov and Bobby Brink, but they, too, have more NHL experience than Stramel.
Up the middle, Stramel won't beat Joel Eriksson Ek, doesn't bring the physicality of Michael McCarron on the fourth line, nor the veteran experience of Ryan Hartman, and like Brink and Shabanov, he is likely unable to beat out Danila Yurov.
It's more than an uphill battle, but Stramel will be given the opportunity to prove himself.
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On Wednesday, the Winnipeg Jets announced that goaltender Connor Hellebuyck had been suspended indefinitely for failing to report to camp, and that GM Kevin Chevaldayoff would speak to the media on Thursday. After benefiting from the Anaheim Ducks’ cap crunch less than a week ago, could Kent Hughes and the Montreal Canadiens swoop in to land an (albeit interested) hand?
After all, the Habs GM said he was fine with starting training camp with three NHL goaltenders, but not starting the season, and while Jacob Fowler could be sent back to Laval, that’s probably not ideal. Looking at the list of invited players to training camp, it’s easy to see that the Canadiens are ready for the possibility of a Samuel Montembeault trade; they have seven goaltenders at camp (Montembeault, Jakub Dobes, Fowler, Kaapo Kahkonen, Hunter Jones, Francesco Lapenna and Hunter Jones), meaning a pair for the Habs, one for the Laval Rocket and one for the Trois-Rivières Lions, with a spare.
Meanwhile, in Winnipeg, if Hellebuyck holds firm and the team keeps him suspended as they struggle to find a good match on the trade market, Stuart Skinner is set to be their number one netminder. While he once led the Edmonton Oilers to a couple of Stanley Cup finals, he hasn’t posted a save percentage above .900 since 2023-24, which hardly inspires confidence. Down in the depth chart are Thomas Milic, who’s seen only two NHL games; Dom DiVincentiis, who’s yet to make it past the AHL; and Isaac Poulter, who has spent time between the AHL and the ECHL. As for Samuel Hrenak and John Parsons, they’ve only just been drafted.
As things stand, the Jets have $4.4 M in cap room and getting an experienced goaltender with NHL experience could be tempting. Montembeault could be an option; he has only a year left on his contract and a $3.15 M cap hit. While the Bécancour native had a horrendous year last season (10-8-4 with a 3.43 goals-against average and a .872 save percentage), many believe he will bounce back. In the four seasons before his collapse, he posted a SV above .900 and was Canada’s third-best netminder at the 4 Nations Face-Off.
The question is whether the Jets would be willing to make it worth the Canadiens’ while. Hughes isn't in the business of giving away assets, but to avoid another three-goalie carousel last season, he traded Cayden Primeau (an RFA) for a seventh-round pick. Of course, Montembeault has more value than Primeau did, but trading him away could remove a thorn from Hughes’ side. It may be time for Hughes to lower his asking price for the goaltender.
Of course, if the Jets could trade Hellebuyck in a deal that includes an NHL-level goaltender, the issue would go away, but they’ve been trying to move him for some time now, and plenty of netminders have been moved this offseason. Winnipeg will be a team to watch in the coming days/weeks…It's an awful position to find yourself in, especially after the goalie said in 2023 that he could see himself "being a Jet for life." What a difference an Olympic gold medal makes...
With Connor Hellebuyck officially not reporting to Jets training camp, let’s revisit what he said after signing his 7-year extension in 2023 😭🤐 pic.twitter.com/v3puR9cLmr
Team Red features much of the expected NHL group, while Team Black is made up largely of players expected to start the season with the Calgary Wranglers, along with several prospects looking to make a strong impression.
With preseason games coming up, here are some of the names and storylines worth watching from each group.
For the most part, this is the group that gives us an early look at the players expected to be competing for spots on the Flames’ opening-night roster.
There is also an interesting prospect mixed into the group.
Chase Harrington, the Flames’ second-round pick from the 2026 NHL Draft, gets an early opportunity to skate alongside NHL veterans.
Harrington is coming off his junior career with the Spokane Chiefs, where he recorded 57 points, including 28 goals and 29 assists, in 61 games last season.
At this point, camp is about getting a first look at how prospects fit into the bigger picture. For Harrington, being around the NHL group provides an opportunity to show what he can do against stronger competition.
Team Black is largely made up of players expected to form the core of the Flames’ AHL affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers.
But that doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty to watch.
Andrew Basha, Jonathan Castagna, Rory Kerins, Sam Morton and Aydar Suniev are among the younger players looking to make an impression and put themselves into the conversation for NHL opportunities.
A strong camp doesn’t necessarily mean an immediate NHL roster spot, but it can go a long way toward establishing where a player sits on the organization’s depth chart when injuries or roster needs arise during the season.
William Strömgren is another player worth keeping an eye on.
After getting an NHL call-up last season, Strömgren enters this year’s camp with some experience at the next level and another opportunity to push his way further up the organization.
Brzustewicz in the Blue-Line Mix
One of the bigger names on Team Black is defenceman Hunter Brzustewicz.
That NHL experience gives him something to build on as he enters another training camp.
The Flames added Simon Nemec and Jake Middleton to the blue line this offseason, creating another layer to the competition for NHL spots.
For Brzustewicz, the task is pretty straightforward: have a strong camp, carry over what he learned from last season and make the decision as difficult as possible for the coaching staff.
What to Watch as Camp Continues
The roster split gives us an early snapshot of how the Flames are organizing their group, but there is still plenty of time for things to change.
The preseason will provide a better indication of where some of these players fit, particularly among the prospects and younger players competing for NHL opportunities.
NEWARK, NJ - SEPTEMBER 13: New Jersey Devils Matyas Melovsky #57 celebrates after scoring a goal during a game between the New York Islanders and New Jersey Devils at RWJ Barnabas Health Hockey House at Prudential Center on September 13, 2026 in Newark, New Jersey.(Photo by Andrew Mordzynski/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The New Jersey Devils 2026-27 roster is mostly set.
Yes, players have just started to report and media day just came around yesterday, but let’s face facts. With the way the New Jersey Devils roster is currently structured, training camp is a mere warm-up for the preseason which is warming the team up for the regular season. While that might sound exactly like what the definitions of those things should be, training camp in thew NHL has had its surprises in the past. Some young players have excelled to the point of making the team out of nowhere, while players that would be expected on the roster have shown themselves to not be ready for NHL action.
The Devils made enough adjustments in the offseason to fill out their forward and defense group, leaving very little room for anyone to come out of obscurity and make their way onto the opening night squad. If you’re still not sold on the idea, take a look at the Devils page on Puckpedia. Oh sure, maybe there’s one fourth line/press box guy that’s currently listed at the NHL level who will be swapped with one currently listed at the AHL level. Maybe Vladislav Kolyachonok is the 7th defender rather than Declan Chisholm when the opening night roster is announced. Perhaps the Devils choose to carry three goalies and have one less forward on the roster, at least at the start of the season. While there’s a few small details that are still to be ironed out, there’s no room for any major surprises.
That means unfortunately for anyone wanting Anton Silaev on the opening night roster, (barring a slew of injuries in preseason games) it’s going to have to wait until at least 2027-28. The players who just appeared at the team’s rookie camp/matchup against the Islanders? Don’t expect to see any of them cracking the lineup either. Players like David Rittich and Amadeus Lombardi (who were alluded to earlier with the “press box guy” label) were already being penciled into the Devils’ roster as they wouldn’t have signed/traded for guys who need to be placed on waivers if they did not intend to play them, although in Rittich’s case, third goalies do sometimes get signed and placed on waivers for depth purposes.
Training camp this year will be about training for these Devils. It will serve as an introduction to some of the younger players through practices and maybe the first or even first two preseason games. Beyond that, with a shorter, four game preseason, the team will be looking to just get all of the new pieces to mesh and figure out who is going to play with who and where on the depth chart. Between signing Anthony Mantha in free agency, and bringing Evan Rodrigues in and Jesper Boqvist back from Florida while also acquiring Luke Evangelista from Nashville. That’s four new forwards at a minimum; with a shorter preparation period, the Devils probably won’t be looking to work in too many other new parts.
Training camp and the preseason will be coming at us quickly, with the first game already slated for this coming Sunday. For the Devils, however, there won’t be much to figure out before the regular season starts. A couple minor things for sure, but the larger parts are already sorted; this preseason, roster formation is a mere formality.
What are your thoughts about the Devils’ training camp; do you feel there’s room for a roster surprise, or do you agree there’s just no space for it this season? Is there anyone you want to see make a strong showing even if it doesn’t result in an NHL spot? If there’s injuries, who do you think could step up? Leave any and all comments below and thanks as always for reading!
