Up front, the club reunited with centre Ben Jones, who returns to the organization after spending the past two seasons in the Minnesota Wild system. Jones signed a one-year, two-way contract worth $850,000 at the NHL level.
The Flames also re-signed forward WilliamStromgren to a one-year, two-way contract. The Swedish winger made his NHL debut with Calgary last season, appearing in three games, while enjoying a productive year with the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers. Stromgren finished fourth on the team in scoring with 47 points (11 goals, 36 assists) in 66 games.
On the blue line, Calgary added three defencemen. Jake Livingstone agreed to a one-year, two-way deal after posting 17 points in 52 AHL games with the Charlotte Checkers last season.
Fellow right-shot defender Mike Benning also signed a one-year, two-way contract following a campaign that included his first 18 NHL games with the Florida Panthers, where he recorded six points.
The Flames also brought in veteran Andreas Englund on a one-year, two-way contract. The 30-year-old has appeared in 200 NHL games across five organizations and adds size, experience, and organizational depth to Calgary’s defensive group.
AJ Greer’s signing rights were acquired by the Anaheim Ducks from the Florida Panthers on June 29 in exchange for the signing rights to now-former captain Radko Gudas.
Both players have now been signed by the teams that acquired them. On Tuesday, reports surfaced of Greer’s contract signing, which has a four-year term and a $4.25 million AAV, along with a 10-team no-trade clause throughout the duration. On Wednesday, it was made official by the Ducks.
Greer (29) is coming off a career year with the Florida Panthers, where he reached a career high in goals (17), assists (15), and points (32) in 78 games, while playing the most consistent minutes in his career (12:26 TOI/G).
Prior to the 2025-26 season, Greer had mustered just 49 points (19-30=49) in 248 career games.
“I just really put my head down and gave it everything I had,” Greer said of the opportunity he earned and the production he displayed in 2025-26. “I know that I can do that again. I don’t think it’s a one-off. Personally, I know what’s in the tank, and I’m a competitor. I’m only going to get better, I believe. So, I’m really looking forward to this opportunity.”
Greer had an up-and-down journey to get to this point in his career, where he was able to parlay a 32-point season into a multi-year, multi-million dollar contract.
He was drafted in the second round (39th overall in 2015) by the Colorado Avalanche out of Boston University of the NCAA. After a year and a half of subpar production, he left BU for the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the QMJHL, where he saw more offensive success.
From 2016 to 2022, Greer played mostly in the AHL, with occasional NHL stints with the Colorado Avalanche and New Jersey Devils franchises. Between 2022 and 2025, he played in an exclusive fourth-line role for the Boston Bruins, Calgary Flames, and Florida Panthers, winning a Stanley Cup with Florida in 2024-25.
The Panthers suffered several injuries to key players in 2025-26, following back-to-back Stanley Cup wins and three consecutive trips to the Stanley Cup Final. Those injuries paved the way to top-nine minutes for Greer, who saw a skyrocket in production and shooting percentage (16.4%), playing more reliable nightly minutes and with more talented linemates.
On the ice, Greer isn’t likely to dazzle with puck skills or impeccable vision. Instead, he’s more of a traditional grinder with remarkable skating, especially given his 6-foot-3, 225-pound frame.
His on-ice strengths include a relentless motor, plus defensive habits, and consistent forechecking tendencies. He singlehandedly forces turnovers from opposing retrieving defensemen and funnels those pucks to the high danger area of the ice.
In the offensive zone, he shields pucks well and keeps his feet moving in order to keep pucks moving. Off-puck, he is constantly fighting for positioning and battles his way to soft ice, rendering himself difficult to play against. His release isn’t lightning quick, but his heavy shot can beat NHL goaltenders from distance if he’s given enough ice.
In transition, he’s never going to be a puck transporter, but he makes smart, effective puck plays to advance through neutral ice and gain bluelines. Defensively, he backchecks through proper lanes, putting back pressure on opposing rush attacks. He gets to his spots for breakouts and is as disruptive as he can be against the cycle, eliminating lanes and options.
In theory, Greer will get a lot of puck touches with his new club, in his new system, with his new teammates, and under his new coach. He offers elements of in-zone offense, disruptive defense, and forechecking that the Ducks desperately needed in 2025-26 and their ensuing playoff run.
Though Greer hasn’t accumulated much time on the penalty kill in his NHL career, if he can add that element to his repertoire, his value will only increase for Anaheim and make them better on special teams, an area of weakness for the better part of a decade.
Greer’s off-ice mentality and determination bleed onto the ice, and his self-awareness and appreciation of the opportunity given to him will undoubtedly lead to him becoming an instant fan and locker room favorite in Anaheim.
TAMPA, FL - MARCH 12: Declan Carlile #67 of the Tampa Bay Lightning celebrates a goal against the Detroit Red Wings at Benchmark International Arena on March 12, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Mark LoMoglio/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
In a lot of ways the the start of the Pittsburgh Penguins offseason has gone about as most of us had expected.
No major long-term contracts.
Targeting players in their mid-20s for trades that might still have a chance to break out in a bigger role.
Cheap, short-term free agents that are either reclamation projects, or players whose value can be pumped up and flipped at the deadline for more future draft picks.
It’s pretty much what they have done in each of the past two summers under Kyle Dubas, and they have had some success with it.
Overall, the Penguins have added six players over the past week either through trade or free agency. We already talked about Kaedan Korczak on Wednesday, so let’s dig a little deeper into the other moves that have been made so far.
Nicholas Robertson
It would be low-key hilarious if somebody misunderstood the Penguins interest in “Robertson” as a desire for Jason when all along the Penguins were talking about Nick.
The Penguins PR staff leaned into it on Wednesday when their email announcing the trade was simply given the subject line of: “Penguins Acquire Robertson.”
Every other roster move was accompanied by an email that included the player’s full name, position and in the case of a trade, what team they were coming from.
But not this trade!
Maybe this is part of a plan to entice Jason to come here. I could see it. It would make sense and be logical. And I do believe they still have some degree of interest in Jason (as they should) and maybe even a chance of actually pulling it off.
Whether they do pull it off or not, I still like this trade in a vacuum and on its own merits.
Robertson fits the exact type of player the Penguins have been trying to acquire the past few years, and he is a pretty good version of it. A younger, mid-20s forward that has flashed NHL ability and production, has easily identifiable skill, has performed well in smaller roles, and might be in need of a bigger role to further test themselves and develop into something more.
He was one of Toronto’s most efficient goal-scorers on a per-minute basis the past three seasons, with his 1.07 goals per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 play trailing only Auston Matthew and William Nylander. That same level of production would compare favorably to the top players that have played for the Penguins. For the cost of a fourth-round pick, it is a worthy bet. If it helps convince one of the league’s top-15 players to want to come here, even better.
Declan Carlile
Instead of overpaying a 30-year-old Parker Wotherspoon in 2027 the Penguins would have been better off trying to find the next Parker Wotherspoon.
This seems like their attempt at it.
Nobody envisioned Wotherspoon, a little-used, organizational depth defenseman that signed a cheap, two-year contract in free agency in the summer of 2025, eventually becoming Erik Karlsson’s partner and an extremely effective player for a playoff team.
I’m not saying Carlile is going to repeat that success, nor am I saying he will be as good as Wotherspoon, but I am just saying to have an open mind on it, especially given the seasons they were coming off of when they joined the Penguins in free agency.
Just for comparison’s sake:
Player
Team
Age
Season
TOI
CF%
xGA/60
xGF%
GA/60
GF%
O-zone %
Parker Wotherspoon
Boston Bruins
27
2024-25
885
47.4
2.31
47.7
2.17
46.6
41.6
Declan Carlile
Tampa Bay Lightning
25
2025-26
561
49.3
2.33
48.6
2.14
48.6
56.8
In terms of shot attempt share, expected goals against, expected goal share, goals against and goal differential they were virtually identical.
The one thing working more in Wotherspoon’s favor is that he faced the tougher minutes from a zone-start perspective.
The counter to that is that he was two years older, had more NHL experience going into the season, and consistently played alongside established NHL players. His most common partners were Brandon Carlo, Andrew Peeke, and Mason Lohrei.
Carlile was 25, had just three games of NHL experience going into the season, and spent most of his time playing next to the likes of Max Crozier, Steve Santini and Charle-Edouard D’Astous. They were all in the same boat of being mid-20s defenders getting their first taste of NHL action. And they did well. Carlile did well no matter who he was playing against.
Wotherspoon signed a two-year, $2 million deal.
Carlile signed a two-year, $3 million deal.
I do not know if it will work out the same way. But the player profiles are nearly identical, and the Penguins were able to turn last year’s guy into a younger player for the next few years at what could be a market-to-below-market contract (Korczak).
It is not hard to see the vision here.
Trevor van Riemsdyk
Of all the moves made so far this is the one that kind of left me scratching my head a little.
van Riemsdyk is a good defensive player, and definitely comes at a cheap price. He also has some positional flexibility and can play on his off-side. But he’s another right-handed defenseman on a team that is very right-handed heavy on defense.
Does it set the stage for a potential Erik Karlsson or Kris Letang trade?
Would Harrison Brunicke be part of a hypothetical Jason Robertson trade package?
Are they going to play one (or both) of van Riemsdyk and Brunicke on their off-side?
This one creates a lot of questions, even if he is a useful player.
The Penguins wanted to improve their defensive zone play. This would definitely help do that even if it is a head-scratcher of a fit.
Andrei Kuzmenko
Well, it’s not hard to see the comparable here.
Say hello to your new Anthony Mantha.
If you just simply look at their 82-game averages they are nearly identical in their production.
Andrei Kuzmenko: 26 goals, 29 assists, 55 points
Anthony Mantha: 25 goals, 26 assists, 51 points
Kuzmenko is the smaller player, isn’t a particularly great skater and can be a total non-factor defensively. But other than the size, you’re again basically describing Anthony Mantha.
A lot of Kuzmenko’s 82-game averages are boosted up by that 39-goal debut season when he scored on more than 27 percent of his shots, and that’s just probably a performance he’s not going to duplicate. Especially now that he is into his 30s. But he has maintained a pretty high shooting percentage, and over the past three years has averaged 0.70 goals per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 play. That places him 212th out of 517 forwards that have logged at least 500 minutes of ice-time. So … about middle of the pack. He is tied with Sean Monahan and Casey Mittelstadt just to give some additional perspective on what that looks like.
I do not expect him to match the goal-scoring production that Mantha had, but the gamble is the same and I imagine so is the intent to potentially use him as a trade chip if needed.
It is also another situation that creates such a log-jam positionally that it makes you wonder what the next foot to drop will be. This gives the Penguins a LOT of NHL-level forwards, including prospects like Rutger McGroarty, Ville Koivunen and Avery Hayes.
Is this is a sign the Penguins are maybe not as high on some of those guys? Is it a sign that a trade of some sort (or multiple trades) are on the horizon?
We will see. The offseason is still very young and there is still a lot of time before the 2026-27 regular season begins.
On Wednesday, the Detroit Red Wings quietly added three players, rounding out the bottom of their organizational depth chart with a trio of signings that span the spectrum from legitimate NHL depth piece to AHL development project.
Defenceman Jacob Bryson, winger Cameron Butler and forward Wilmer Skoog all inked deals with Detroit, each arriving at a different stage of their professional careers and each likely serving a very different role within the organization.
Bryson, the 28-year-old London, Ontario native was originally selected by the Buffalo Sabres in the fourth round of the 2017 NHL Draft and has carved out a professional career through intelligence, skating ability and a puck-moving game that belies his draft positioning.
Bryson is not a player who will anchor a top pairing or quarterback a power play unit, but he is a reliable, quick-transitioning defenceman who fits cleanly at the bottom of an NHL lineup and has consistently posted respectable plus/minus numbers even while skating on some of the worst Sabres teams of the rebuild era.
He has shown he can log roughly ten points in a given season and keep the puck moving efficiently out of his own end, making him a credible option for Detroit as a seventh defenceman who can step in when injuries strike without the team missing a beat. His time with the Jets gave him a taste of a winning environment, and he brings that familiarity with a contending culture to a Red Wings team looking to climb back into the playoff picture.
Butler represents a longer-term developmental bet. The 24-year-old undrafted winger out of Ottawa has spent his entire professional career in the minor leagues, bouncing between the AHL and ECHL without yet finding a consistent foothold at the higher level.
His most productive stretch came this past season in the ECHL, where he posted 20 points in 30 games and showed flashes of the offensive game that could make him a factor higher up the organizational ladder. The AHL numbers told a more modest story, with Butler recording just one point in 16 games with the Iowa Wild, leaving plenty of questions about what kind of player he is when facing that level of competition on a nightly basis.
The move to Grand Rapids puts him in one of the premier development environments in the entire American Hockey League, and the Griffins' track record of player development gives Butler as good a chance as any depth signing of this kind to find his game and push for more opportunity.
Skoog is perhaps the most intriguing of the three as the 26-year-old Swedish forward spent the bulk of this past season in the AHL with the Charlotte Checkers, where he was one of the team's more consistent offensive contributors, finishing with 37 points in 61 games for a club that was among the better organizations at that level.
Wilmer Skoog kept his hot hand going in December - including this 🚀one-time rocket🚀 - and secured @SharpHomeUSA Sharpshooter of the Month honors! pic.twitter.com/Ulvi2dzcVL
What may have caught Detroit's attention, however, was the brief window Skoog got with the Florida Panthers, appearing in three NHL games and recording two assists, a modest sample but one that came on one of the league's elite franchises and suggests that Red Wings management may have identified him as a potential diamond in the rough.
A player who can put up 37 points in the AHL and chip in offensively when called upon at the NHL level is exactly the kind of depth forward capable of emerging as an organizational surprise, and Grand Rapids gives him a platform to do just that.
Taken together, the three signings reflect the quiet but important work of building out an organization from top to bottom. Bryson gives Detroit a credible NHL depth option on the back end. Butler gives the Griffins a hungry, motivated winger with something to prove. And Skoog gives the organization a legitimate AHL contributor with a real argument that he belongs at the next level.
None of the three will headline a roster move this summer, but the best organizations in hockey know that the margins at the bottom of the depth chart matter, and Detroit appears to be paying attention to those details heading into what could be a critical season for the franchise.
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After winning the Atlantic Division and advancing to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, not a great deal of changes were expected from the Buffalo Sabres on the opening day of free agency, and the club mostly took care of housekeeping items on July 1, trading goalie Devon Levi to Edmonton for a draft choice, locking up recently acquired blueliner Olen Zellweger, and bringing back a pair of former Sabres in free agency.
Levi, who spent nearly all of the last two seasons in AHL Rochester and would not have waiver exemption next season, was sent to the Oilers along with a 2028 seventh round pick for Edmonton’s 2028 third round pick. The 24-year-old was in the second year of a two-year, $1.625 million deal and his fate in the organization was sealed when Buffalo claimed Colton Ellis off of waivers from St. Louis last October and kept him on the NHL roster all season.
Zellweger, 22, who was acquired in a deal with Anaheim for a 2026 second-round pick and minor league forward Anton Wahlberg, signed a three-year, $9.3 million deal, giving the Sabres some cost certainty and stability on the blueline. The former Duck will likely slot in as a bottom-pairing defender to start next season, but has the ability to move up in the lineup.
There was some thought that GM Jarmo Kekalainen, would seek to make a big splash to make up for the departures of defenseman Bowen Byram and winger Alex Tuch, either in free agency or in a trade. Rumors connecting the Sabres to a deal for Winnipeg goalie Connor Hellebuyck have not come to fruition at this time, but the cost of players in a weak free agent class, and Buffalo’s lack of cap space contributed to the Sabres being quiet on Wednesday.
The Sabres brought back two former Sabres; defenseman Dennis Gilbert and forward Conor Sheary on one-year, $850,000 contracts. The 29-year-old Gilbert (a Buffalo native) played 25 games for the club in 2024-25 before being included in the Dylan Cozens - Josh Norris trade in March, 2025. Sheary played 133 games from 2018 to 2020 for the Sabres and has played for four other clubs over 11 NHL seasons. Last season, he played 62 games for the New York Rangers. Both players are expected to be veteran depth in AHL Rochester who could get called up instead of younger players still gaining experience with the Amerks.
The club also added AHLer Jason Polin on a one-year contract, and Buffalo native Trevor Kuntar to a two-year, $1.75 million two-way deal.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 16: Andrei Kuzmenko #96 of the Los Angeles Kings and Sidney Crosby #87 of the Pittsburgh Penguins battle for a loose puck during the first period at Crypto.com Arena on October 16, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Ric Tapia/Getty Images) | Getty Images
NHL teams can give out up to 50 contracts per season. After the dust from an active day one of free agency settles in, let’s check on how the Penguins are looking this year towards that metric.
Departed from 2025-26
The following players left the organization officially yesterday via free agency, their new organizations noted if they found one already.
Noel Acciari (PHI), Sebastian Aho (Sweden), Connor Clifton (BOS), Rafael Harvey-Pinard, Kevin Hayes, Boko Imama (FLA), Joona Koppanen (Sweden), Anthony Mantha, Ryan Shea (EDM) and Stuart Skinner (WIN).
Add Alexander Alexeyev to the list of players coming off the 50 organizational contracts. Pittsburgh will retain his NHL rights though the defender has signed with the KHL to play for the next two seasons and won’t be a part of the organization in the near-future (if ever again).
Parker Wotherspoon, Emil Pieniniemi and Jack St. Ivany join the outgoing rush of NHL contracts that were on the books in 2025-26 that won’t be moving forward due to offseason trades in their cases.
All in all there were six forwards, seven defensemen and one goalie who were the positional splits of NHL contracts last year that have left in 2026-27. That raw count encompasses a wide range of impacts, from the NHL team leader in goals (Mantha) and important figures in the lineup (Shea, Skinner, Acciari) to depth part-time players (Clifton, Hayes) down to players that helped at the AHL level made little to no NHL impact last season (Aho, Alexeyev, Harvey-Pinard, Imama, Koppanen).
Added for 2026-27
Pittsburgh has added the following new contracts to the books for 2026-27. This includes an old face in Atley Calvert who graduated from an AHL contract to signing a two-year NHL deal with the Penguins.
Andrei Kuzmenko, Trevor van Riemsdyk and Declan Carlile were signed as free agents yesterday. So too, technically was Calvert getting his first NHL contract. (Goalie Taylor Gauthier was signed late in 2025-26 to an NHL deal, so for this purpose neither he – nor Jake Livanavage – are considered as ‘new’ in 2026-27).
For incoming traded players: Kaeden Korczak, Oliver Okuliar and David Gustafsson join the organization. Hendrix Lapierre and Nick Robertson as restricted free agents to be signed before the season ought to be considered in this category as well.
2026-27 will be the first year entry level contracts officially start for Harrison Brunicke, Gabriel D’Aigle, Bill Zonnon and Melvin Fernstrom (the latter whose contract still slid due to his age and lack of NHL games last season). So that represents another area of change to add those players to the mix. We’re not accounting for Peyton Kettles, who is signed to his ELC, but will have his contract slide and not start until 2027-28 if he doesn’t play 10+ NHL games this season (sounds like a safe assumption). There’s a chance the Penguins sign additional drafted players, though they would toll and start after 2026-27 and not be a consideration for taking one of the 50 contracts for this upcoming year.
Add that up and we see seven forwards, four defensemen and one goalie added to the organization’s 50 contracts so far as of the morning of July 2nd.
—
To split things out from the NHL perspective, the Penguins lost three roster forwards from the end of the season (Acciari, Mantha, K. Hayes) and have added three NHL-caliber forwards to the organization in their places already (Kuzmenko, Robertson, Lapierre).
Pittsburgh waved goodbye to three NHL defensemen (Wotherspoon, Shea, Clifton) and replaced them in numbers with three incoming options (van Riemsdyk, Korczak, Carlile).
The goaltending position shows the results of a youth movement, losing an NHLer (Skinner) and adding a younger minor leaguer to help backfill the organization in a period of transition as an AHL goalie from 2025-26 moves up the ladder to the NHL for 2026-27.
Overall for the organization, compared to last year it might appear running a little heavy on forwards compared to the split of defensemen — a result of exchanging two depth defensemen (St. Ivany and Pieniniemi) for depth forwards (Gustafsson and Okuliar). While that seems like an imbalance, that’s likely insignificant for the future in the org’s balance/depth that exists.
Add in the likes of Ryan Graves, Caleb Jones and Ilya Solovyov and Pittsburgh has more swing NHL/AHL options than they can fit on the NHL roster. The core of the AHL is already stocked with developing prospects like Brunicke, Livanavage, Owen Pickering, Finn Harding and Chase Pietila next season. (And we haven’t even gotten to WBS captain Phil Kemp, Daniel Laatsch and the players on AHL contracts that will serve as further depth for Wilkes). That accounting of bodies shows the recent movement has been a course correction to balance out a blueline that was overstocked on the organizational level more than a current need for further organizational depth.
As it stands today, Pittsburgh sits at 39 contracts per PuckPedia, though it’s worth noting the true number could be considered 42 at the moment. We come to that figure by subtracting Kettles, who will likely slide and not count this year, while adding in RFA’s Lapierre, Robertson, Egor Chinakhov and Arturs Silovs, that will eventually be taking a spot in the 50. For future flexibility a team usually likes to carry in the 46-49 range when possible, so based on that the Penguins still have the ability to add a few more players via trades or free agency. Grabbing another AHLer or two could well be in the cards to stack WBS up again.
One can always bicker about the particular if the specific moves made in the past few days and weeks will end up being helpful, improvements or how they will fit together in the bigger picture, but this outlook gives a general scope of the players coming and going. The Pens haven’t overloaded on bodies during this very active time, more or less they look balanced fairly similar to how they stacked up last year, just in different ways. That’s always subject to change if a massive transaction gets made to greatly shake the picture up and the season is still a long ways away.
You’d be hard-pressed to find a player who’s returned to the Vancouver Canucks organization on two separate occasions.
Somehow, that’s exactly what the Canucks got on July 1 when they signed defenceman Luke Schenn to a one-year contract in free agency.
Schenn, of course, is notably joining the Canucks for the third time throughout his long-tenured NHL career. The organization has found itself in vastly different positions through each of the defenceman’s stints with Vancouver.
In 2018–19, when he was traded to Vancouver for Michael Del Zotto, the Canucks looked to be a team on the rise, gunning for trips to the playoffs in the following seasons.
When he signed with the Canucks in free-agency in 2021, after winning two consecutive Stanley Cups with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Vancouver wound up in an in-betweener role — still playoff-hopeful but clearly in need of a piece or two before they could fully contend.
Now, as Schenn prepares to make his third stop in Vancouver, the Canucks have clearly dropped off compared to the past. Officially in rebuild-mode, it’s going to take some time before Vancouver becomes a true playoff-contender.
Contributing to the organization’s eventual greatness is something Schenn doesn’t take lightly.
“Vancouver, to me, isn’t just a place where you’re going to just put another year in worth in the NHL,” he told reporters shortly after signing his one-year deal with the team. “Obviously, you know what they’re doing right now in terms of the rebuild and where they’re going, and I want to be a part of that. And I’m looking forward to it, obviously. I know where they’re at in terms of where they are in the organization and what the plan is. But, like I said, I care, and want to make things better and help out in the room, and on the ice, and help be a part of it, so I’m excited.”
This time around, however, Schenn knows his role will be different. The number of minutes he plays or stats he puts up won’t be the big thing discussed — it’ll be the kind of experience he can impart on the team.
“I think that actually excites me to pass on some of my experience, and I think there’s not much in my NHL career that I haven’t really gone through, whether it’s being a high draft pick, like some of the kids are on the team — or guys, I should say — are on the team. I’ve been traded, I’ve been in the American League, I’ve been in the press box, I’ve won the cup, and I’ve been on winning teams, and I’ve been on rebuilding teams. I think there’s a lot that I can share and experience.”
Schenn adds to the hint of familiarity embedded in a Canucks locker room that has undergone massive turnover since the start of the 2025–26 season, never mind the changes that have occurred throughout the years prior. Many of Vancouver’s new management and coaching staff were still within the organization during both of Schenn’s two other tenures with the Canucks.
One specific connection representing a near full-circle movement is Schenn’s link to new-Canucks General Manager Ryan Johnson, who the defenceman credits with helping him ‘revive’ his NHL career.
“RJ was a huge part of why I’m even maybe back in the NHL, when I got traded from Anaheim and had to start in Utica,” he said. “RJ was incredible. He was in my corner, trying to help get me back and push to get me back into the NHL and communicate with me.”
Nov 27, 2022; San Jose, California, USA; Vancouver Canucks defenseman Luke Schenn (2) before the start of the second period against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports
Returning to Vancouver means a reunion with not just familiar people on staff, but also with former teammates in Thatcher Demko, Brock Boeser, and Elias Pettersson. The bulk of Schenn’s new teammates will, however, be new — especially on the team’s young blueline.
In 2018–19, Schenn was the first NHL defenceman that Quinn Hughes was partnered with when the ex-Canucks captain made his debut back on March 28. Now, seven years later, Schenn may be tasked with a similar situation with budding young defenceman Zeev Buium on the rise. Having heard things about Buium from ex-Tampa Bay teammate Zach Bogosian, who played with Buium on the Minnesota Wild, Schenn’s done the pre-scout on the young defenceman and knows what could be expected of him.
“Obviously said he’s a great personality, great character, and obviously a super high upside too. Maybe it’s similar for me when I played with Quinn, in terms of a guy who’s young and can skate and move the puck, and you’ve gotta just help him out along the way.”
Additions to the team like Schenn and Brendan Gallagher are big for a Canucks locker room that has specified time and time again that they’re looking to improve their culture. Both players have expressed how excited they are about that prospect, both in public as well as amongst themselves.
“He’s already been texting me here since the news came out, and we’re both really excited to come and join the Canucks,” Schenn said of newly-acquired forward Gallagher, who Vancouver traded for on Monday. “Obviously we’re experienced guys, and feel like we can definitely help out in different areas, but obviously the big word is, with culture, that’s obviously what we really would like to help out [with], and any which way we can with that, and obviously on the ice, and work, and compete, and all those little things.”
Culture is the big task the Canucks are looking to tackle. Over seven years after he first joined the organization, Schenn will be one of the guys to help them get there.
“It’s not one thing, it’s different. It starts with probably the little habits, which are big habits [...] practice habits, like every day, simple things, doing it correctly, putting the pass on the tape, battling in practice, not taking shortcuts off the ice in the gym, in a game, doing the correct thing shift after shift, no matter what the circumstances, and continuing to work towards whatever you’re trying to achieve.”
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After a tough 2025-26 season with the Chicago Blackhawks, Sam Lafferty has found a new home in free agency.
The Florida Panthers have announced that they have signed Lafferty to a one-year, two-way contract for the 2025-26 season.
Lafferty will now be aiming to compete for a spot on the Panthers' NHL roster after landing this contract. The possibility of him being an extra forward for Florida, like he was with Chicago this past season, is there.
Lafferty appeared in 29 games during this past season with the Blackhawks, where he recorded one goal, one assist, and 35 hits. This was after he had four goals, seven points, and 89 hits in 60 games for the Buffalo Sabres during the 2024-25 season.
In 126 games over multiple stints with the Blackhawks, Lafferty recorded 16 goals, 18 assists, 34 points, 63 penalty minutes, and 232 hits. His best season with the Blackhawks was in 2022-23 when he recorded 10 goals, 21 points, and 94 hits in 51 games before being traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs later that campaign.
Bokondji Imama's time with the Pittsburgh Penguins organization is over, as he has signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Florida Panthers.
Imama spent the majority of this past season down in the AHL with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. In 66 games with the AHL club this past season, he posted six goals, five assists, 11 points, and 137 penalty minutes. This was after he had three goals, five points, and 47 penalty minutes in 24 games for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton during the 2024-25 season.
Imama also made appearances at the NHL level for Pittsburgh during each of the last two seasons. In 18 games with Pittsburgh over that span, the 6-foot-1 forward scored one goal and recorded 35 penalty minutes.
Imama will now be joining a Panthers club that certainly values grit and toughness. He should be a call-up candidate for the Panthers when they want to add more bite to their lineup or when injuries arise.
The Columbus Blue Jackets went into Day 1 of NHL Free Agency with a ton of uncertainty. But the black cloud hanging over the franchise revolved around Zach Werenski and Kirill Marchenko and whether they would be traded anytime soon.
There was other business to attend to as well though. From signing free agents to signing their own RFA's, Don Waddell was a busy man on Wednesday.
Let's recap everything that happened on Day 1.
The first piece of business was Zach Werenski. After all the chaos that ensued on Tuesday night, with reports of a declined trade by Werenski, Columbus fans were left in shock and NHL fans begging for more. Late on Wednesday, the CBJ and Werenski put out joint statements to address the situation.
Mason Marchment - San Jose Sharks - 5 Year, $35 Million Contract
OTHERS
Erik Gudbranson has yet to sign with a new team. It's possible he still returns to the CBJ.
RFA's Adam Fantilli, Jet Greaves, Cole Sillinger, and Luke Tuch have been given their QO's, but have yet to sign their contracts.
Next Up For Columbus: Free Agency continues on.
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The Buffalo Sabres have reunited with two players in free agency.
The Sabres have announced that they have signed forward Conor Sheary and defenseman Dennis Gilbert to one-year, $850,000 contracts.
Sheary spent this past season with the New York Rangers, where he recorded seven goals, 11 assists, 18 points, and a plus-1 rating. He will now provide the Sabres with a veteran depth forward and should compete for a spot in their bottom six.
Sheary previously played for the Sabres from 2018-19 to 2019-20. In 133 games with the Sabres over that span, he posted 23 goals, 30 assists, and 53 points.
As for Gilbert, he had one assist and 10 hits in eight games this season with the Ottawa Senators. He spent the bulk of the season in the AHL split between the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and Belleville Senators, though, where he recorded zero goals, 13 assists, and 33 penalty minutes.
Gilbert appeared in 25 games for the Sabres during the 2024-25 season, where he recorded five assists, 50 penalty minutes, and 52 hits.
In an overview of this batch of transactions, the Maple Leafs have sent a message to the rest of the league about looking to be competitive next season. But more importantly, they've addressed some key areas of the roster, bolstered their forward depth, and practically reshaped the entire bottom six.
"Well, certainly a player of Sergei Bobrovsky's caliber, I think, sends a message that we're serious about moving this team ahead and getting back on track and trying to take it to another level," Chayka said in his media availability on Wednesday. But I'd say everyone from him to the depth signings that bring us a lot of different elements and are allowing our players to be put in different positions where they can have their talents come out in the best way possible."
While the overall roster has seemingly improved on paper, Chayka has been able to address a couple of areas that needed some tweaks.
After the departures of players such as Scott Laughton, Nicolas Roy and even Bobby McMann this past season, Toronto lost some individuals who were excellent penalty killers and defensively strong.
Those abilities were recouped in Wednesday's activity, with Sissons, Blueger and Duhaime all being great suitors for a penalty-killing role, or even to take a D-zone start over Auston Matthews to allow him to focus on the offensive side of the game.
"It's a full picture, and so, we needed to get better in terms of the defensive side of the game," Chayka said. "We need to address our penalty killing, and we need to bring some more speed to the lineup. And I think if you look at the full picture, we're a much more dynamic team today than we were 24 hours ago."
When Chayka mentions speed, he's likely referring to Duhaime, who is a well-above-average skater in terms of his speed.
The 29-year-old left winger finished the past season in the 91st percentile in speed bursts at 22-plus mph, executing 11. The average NHL skater recorded 3.8. Duhaime also reached the 92nd percentile in max skating speed, clocking at 23.3 mph in a game from late March, according to NHL Edge.
In the theme of penalty killing, Duhaime can also do a job in that aspect, averaging 1:07 of shorthanded ice time in 2025-26 with the Washington Capitals.
The new-look bottom-six forward group that Chayka has introduced brings more tools and will have a lot more responsibility than the way the Leafs ended this past campaign.
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Maccelli, who was selected by the Arizona Coyotes in the fourth round (No. 98) in the 2019 NHL Draft -- fun fact, Isaiah George was selected with the same pick just three years -- was not tendered a qualifying offer by the Toronto Maple Leafs following the 2025-26 season, which allowed him to become an unrestricted free agent.
The Finnish forward had a solid year, recording 14 goals with 25 assists for 39 points after only scoring eight goals with 10 assists for 18 points during his one and only season in Utah after the migration from Arizona.
"Matias is definitely a skilled player and e's only 25 years old too," Islanders general manager Mathieu Darche said on Wednesday night. "He will be a restricted free agent at the end of the year, so you see some teams around the league, like you see a guy that's had 50, 57-point seasons. First of all, he's going to help us now, and if things go well, and he plays well with us, and there's a good fit, well, nothing says that we can't continue with him.
"So, we brought some offensive skill to our lineup that will help our, you know, our top lines, and that will also help on the power play."
Yes, Maccelli will be an RFA after this season, which is critical in a salary cap world for a team that is expecting to undergo some major changes next summer when certain contracts come off the books.
It's a huge prove-it year for the skilled forward.
While doing some digging on the player, I found something very interesting.
Despite being a fourth round pick, he actually, sits in the top 10 in his draft class in points.
Sure, you have the heavy hitters -- Jack Hughes (428), Matt Boldy (329) and Cole Caufiled (307) -- but ninth on the list is Maccelli with 169.
He is ahead of names like Connor McMichael (154), Shane Pinto (153), Pavel Dorofeyev (149) and Islanders forward Simon Holmstrom (120).
Out of the top 10 point producing players from this draft class, Maccelli is only one of two players not selected in the first round. The only other is Aliaksei Protas, who was selected 91st overall.
Maccelli will likely play a middle-six role for the Islanders and maybe, maybe, skate alongside a Mathew Barzal given his wheels.
The Islanders made a few depth signings on the first day of free agency, and evidently, one was to replace the departing Max Shabanov, who very understandably chose not to return. But the big splash (or unsplash?) was the confirmation that captain Anders Lee was existing after 923 regular season plus another 46 playoff games with the organization that drafted him.
Lee, who reports indicated was only offered short term (a year…maybe two late?) by the Islanders, left to take a three-year deal at age 36 with Utah, who also added Vincent Trocheck from the Rangers. A reasonable deduction would be that Lee expects to be able to play at least three more NHL seasons, and he didn’t want one of those to be here if he was just going to be cast away next summer.
For GM Mathieu Darche, the name of the game was flexibility, as each addition he made was for one year, and he referenced an expected $40 million in cap space available next summer.
The Signings
More on Darche’s remarks below, but first, the additions:
A depth goalie: Vitek Vanicek was inked to a one-year deal, taking on the David Rittich role in that he can be in the AHL if and when Semyon Varlamov is healthy but can be the backup if Varlamov has a setback. [Isles]
A depth defenseman: Matthew Kessel joins after several seasons as a callup/7th-8th D with the Blues. He’s perfectly fine as a guy who can step in, likely with more of a coach’s trust than Adam Boqvist was able to garner. [Isles]
A middle-six forward: Matias Maccelli joins, most recently from the Leafs. He’s a creative Finn who plays “the right way” and Pete DeBoer said he liked his game when both were out West. Here are 7 facts about Maccelli (relax, relax, he’s not Italian). [Isles]
Another depth forward: Mitchel Chaffee joins with just 109 NHL games at age 28. [Isles] He’ll be a callup/injury fill-in type.
An AHL forward: Matt Luff was also re-signed at age 29. He was with Bridgeport late last season after yet another Blues-Islanders exchange. It’s a two-way deal, so maybe he sees some NHL time in an injury crisis, but otherwise he’s an experienced AHL (sometimes All-Star) for…Hamilton. [Isles]
#Isles GM Mathieu Darche said signing D Matt Kessel for depth does not alter team's hope that Isaiah George is able to make the team out of training camp.
"We're just trying to bring some depth to the organization and bringing some competition at training camp."
Notes and observations on a few guys from the Blue & White scrimmage. [Isles]
Back to free agency and Lee’s departure: Darche spoke with media, confirming the previously reported gap between Lee and the team on term and setting the context for what the GM did on July 1. [Newsday | Post | THN]
With the captain gone, it’s likely Bo Horvat and Brayden Schenn (whose $6.5M cap hit for the next two years is above what Lee just got) will be the veteran leaders now, with a side of Kyle Palmieri.
After all that drama, the Blue Jackets and Zach Werenski kissed and made up. [Athletic | NHL | ESPN]
Tee hee: the Leafs bet big on Sergei Bobrovsky’s aging years. [NHL]
Ranking the day’s best and worst deals (Maccelli’s is seen as a win): Zuccarello to the Kings for just $1 million somehow, while the Sharks gave Jacob Trouba four years at $8.25 million(!). WTF. [Athletic]
The Oilers did a lot of shuffling, including adding goalie Frederik Andersen and finding a no-salary-retained taker for Darnell Nurse. [NHL]
The Canadiens extended Ivan Demidov for eight years and $73 million, starting a year from now. [Sportsnet]
The Panthers didn’t stop with Brady Tkachuk, and they’re happy with their shuffle. [NHL]
John Carlson signs for two years in Tampa, continuing a tradition of players who choose the Lightning over the Hurricanes. [Sportsnet]
Jamie Oleksiak, who came to the Kraken in 2021 as part of the expansion draft, will be headed to the Vancouver Canucks for the 2026-27 season. The 6’7”, 252 pound defenseman has skated in 758 NHL games over 13 seasons, the past five of those in Seattle.
During his time in Seattle, Oleksiak appeared in 389 regular season games. He posted 17 goals for a total of 89 points. He hit a career-high 9 goals (25 points) in the 2022-23 season. Known primarily for his size, Oleksiak’s control and agility mean he moves like a much smaller skater as he out-maneuvers the opposition to move the puck up ice.
Courtesy of Seattle Kraken
Selected by the Dallas Stars in the first round (14th overall) in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, Oleksiak has played with the Stars, Pittsburgh Penguins, and the Kraken. The veteran defenseman agreed to a 2-year, $5 million AAV contract with the Canucks.
