Category: Sports News

Recent speculation over the futures of Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid and Minnesota Wild left winger Kirill Kaprizov overshadowed Martin Necas' contract situation with the Colorado Avalanche.

Like McDavid and Kaprizov, Necas is UFA-eligible next July. If those two end up staying with their respective clubs, the 26-year-old right winger will become one of the most prized players in next summer's free-agent market.

Corey Masisak of The Denver Postrecently included Necas' contract negotiations among his 10 biggest questions facing the Avalanche this season. He believes they must get him signed to a deal that works for them now and after superstar defenseman Cale Makar's next contract goes into effect.

Otherwise, Avalanche management must consider a trade. Masisak believes their asking price for Necas will be expensive, considering he was part of the return from the Carolina Hurricanes in the Mikko Rantanen trade in January.

The Denver Gazette's Evan Rawal was asked if Necas would re-sign with Colorado before Kaprizov does with the Wild. He doesn't rule out the possibility of him waiting to see what Kaprizov gets before putting pen to paper with the Avalanche.

Speaking of pending UFA players, Rasmus Andersson recently returned to Calgary and spoke with the local media regarding his future with the Flames.

Daniel Austin of the Calgary Sunreported the 28-year-old defenseman is eager to start this season despite it potentially being his last with the Flames. He denied a report from earlier this summer claiming he'd only accept a trade to the Vegas Golden Knights, calling it “fake information,” and doesn't believe his situation will be a distraction for his teammates.

Austin thinks Andersson will be moved at some point before the March 6, 2026, trade deadline. However, he pointed out that Flames GM Craig Conroy hasn't closed the door on a contract extension.

Meanwhile, in Columbus, Yegor Chinakhov hasn't rescinded the trade request he made two months ago. Nevertheless, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic indicated last week that the 24-year-old center's situation hasn't reached the point of no return.

While GM Don Waddell remains open to moving Chinakhov for the right offer, he noted that the young forward was among the first players to return to Columbus for training camp and appears to be in excellent shape.

Waddell is taking that as a positive sign. However, Chinakhov must meet with coach Dean Evason before training camp opens this week to discuss the “misunderstandings” that prompted his trade request.

For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com.

The Detroit Red Wings unveiled a new jersey on Monday to celebrate their centennial season.

The uniform commemorates 100 years of Hockeytown history and will be worn for more than a dozen home games, the team said. The franchise entered the NHL in 1926 as the Detroit Cougars. They then became the Falcons for two seasons before changing their name again to the Red Wings in 1932-33.

"Red Wings fans have long embraced the Winged Wheel, and we wanted our Centennial uniform to commemorate its legacy," Ryan Gustafson, president-CEO of Ilitch Sports + Entertainment, said in a news release. "This design honors the traditions that make Red Wings hockey truly distinctive, while incorporating meaningful details to celebrate this remarkable milestone in a way that stays authentic to Detroit."

The result is a traditional Winged Wheel jersey loaded with elements telling the history of the franchise.

That includes the "Olde English 'D' " the Cougars wore on their jerseys, which resurfaces as a secondary mark that appears on the pants, the jock tag at the front of the jersey and on the back. The number font is also inspired by the Cougars' 1927-28 uniforms.

The Centennial uniform also features striping on the sleeves, hem and socks, commemorating the Falcons uniforms.

The Winged Wheel crest uses the first version of the logo from 1932 to 1948.

Other uniform details include a lace-up collar, matte red helmets, the franchise's 11 Stanley Cup-winning years on the inside hem, a reimagined Hockeytown mark and some faux leather patches on the jersey.

The Centennial uniform debuts in Detroit's home-opener on Oct. 9 against a fellow Original Six squad, the Montreal Canadiens.

The Red Wings and Canadiens have faced off 612 times in NHL regular-season history. Detroit has a 219-291-6 record against Montreal, with 96 ties. In the playoffs, Montreal has a 33-29 edge.

For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com.

A familiar face was behind the bench for the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Prospect Showdown in Montreal.

It had previously been announced that the Toronto Marlies’ coaching staff — consisting of John Gruden, Michael Dyck, Steve Sullivan, and Hannu Toivonen (goaltending coach) — would be overseeing the group of prospects at the mini tournament.

However, when a camera panned to the bench after the second period of Sunday’s game against the Montreal Canadiens, former Maple Leafs defenseman Mark Giordano was spotted standing alongside the other coaches.

Mark Giordano is behind the bench with the Maple Leafs' prospects. pic.twitter.com/svyS9sTK9Q

— Nick Barden (@nickbarden) September 14, 2025

The 41-year-old was confirmed to be behind the bench for the Maple Leafs, but it’s unknown what his role was within the personnel who travelled to Montreal this past weekend.

Maple Leafs assistant GM, player development, Hayley Wickenheiser, was asked about Giordano’s role earlier this summer after he had been seen around the club’s facilities at development camp. 

“Mark’s been around. I’m not sure what he’s worked out with (Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving) in terms of moving forward with a role, but he certainly knows the organization. He’s been around, and I think is interested in the coaching, development side of things.”

Takeaways From Maple Leafs' Win Over Canadiens At Prospect ShowdownThe Toronto Maple Leafs’ prospects had a better result after losing their first game of the Prospect Showdown in Montreal to the Ottawa Senators.

Giordano was seen chatting with several players and staff during the camp in July, and even put together a speech for the prospects. He spoke about his journey from being an undrafted defenseman to winning the Norris Trophy in 2019.

“I think there’s a lot of players sitting and listening to Gio that said, that’s me, and that could be me. The career that he had being undrafted coming in and eventually winning a Norris Trophy, is really an incredible story,” Wickenheiser said in July.

“But when he starts to speak about the road and how much commitment and effort and what he learned along the way, I think probably those players sitting there listening go, ‘I can do it, but boy, it takes a lot of work to get there.’ And so it’s nice to have these guys around that can just share stories very informally with the players. I think they get a lot out of it.”

'I Was In The Steam Room': Mark Giordano Relives Trade From Kraken To Maple Leafs, Joins TSN For NHL Deadline CoverageGiordano discussed his trade to Toronto and who he thinks the team should trade for before the NHL trade deadline on March 7.

Giordano spent parts of three seasons with the Maple Leafs, from 2022 to 2024, after being acquired by the club during the 2022 NHL trade deadline. He would suit up for 144 regular season games for Toronto, tallying nine goals and 45 points while averaging 18:14 of ice time.

The veteran defenseman also appeared in 18 playoff games, helping the club defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games during the 2023 postseason, the first time they've gotten out of the first round win since 2004.

Report: Maple Leafs, Anthony Stolarz Leaving ‘No Stone Unturned’ In Contract Extension NegotiationsWill the Toronto Maple Leafs and Anthony Stolarz agree on a contract extension before the 2025-26 season begins? That appears to be the multi-million dollar question.

Giordano hasn’t formally retired from pro hockey, yet he has taken on several roles since his last season with the Maple Leafs in 2024. He joined TSN for their trade deadline coverage earlier this spring and was 2025 first-overall pick Matthew Shaefer’s defense coach this summer.

It remains to be seen whether Giordano will have a role with the Maple Leafs for the upcoming season as the NHL camp opens up this week.

Latest stories:

Takeaways From Maple Leafs' Win Over Canadiens At Prospect Showdown

John Gruden Wants Maple Leafs To 'Move Pucks Quicker' Following Loss To Senators At Prospects Showcase In Montreal

Report: Maple Leafs, Anthony Stolarz Leaving ‘No Stone Unturned’ In Contract Extension Negotiations

The Ottawa Senators closed out their rookie camp with a 3-2 overtime loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Sunday night. Despite outshooting the Jets in regulation 37-22, the Sens fell to 1-1 at the weekend Prospects Showdown in Montreal. The best of the group will now get an invitation to main camp, which opens this week.

Oskar Pettersson and Jorian Donovan had the Senators' goals on Sunday. Pettersson opened the scoring on a nice give-and-go with Phillippe Daoust. He dished to Daoust at the blue line, then made a hard charge to the far post and was rewarded, tipping in the return pass from Daoust. 

Donovan scored from distance at the end of the second period. His wrist shot through traffic beat a screened Alex Worthington and tied the game at 2.

After Jackson Parsons went wire to wire on Saturday, the Ottawa net was a time share situation on Sunday, split evenly between starter Vladimir Nikitin and Lucas Beckman. Both gave up a goal in regulation and had some good moments. Beckman was a little unlucky on the OT winner, lunging to his left to prevent a wraparound attempt. The puck quickly squirted out to the opposite side, right onto the stick of Fabian Wagner, who ended it before Beckman could recover.

Worthington made 36 saves while Ben Zloty and Jacob Julien scored the other goals for Winnipeg.

Along with Pettersson and Donovan, Xavier Bourgault and Stephen Halliday were, again, two of the better players on the ice for Ottawa. Carter Yakemchuk, probably the only player at this camp with an outside shot at an NHL job right now, got the night off. 

So with rookie camp and the Prospects Showdown now in the books, Belleville head coach David Bell says he was pleased with the compete level.

"We asked them to compete," Bell told the media after the game. "Travis Green spoke to them before the tournament started, and said that to be an Ottawa Senator, you have to compete for a full 60 minutes. I thought we, for the most part, outplayed them this game, but didn't get the results, so I applaud them for the effort from start to finish."

While 

The Senators will open 2025 training camp on Wednesday with fitness testing.

By Steve Warne
This article first appeared at The Hockey News-Ottawa

More Sens Headlines From The Hockey News Ottawa:

Report: Alex Formenton's NHL Eligibility To Be Restored On December 1st
Sens Unveil Rookie Camp Roster For Games This Weekend
Senators GM Steve Staios On Why He Brought Back The Same Group
Can The Senators Still Avoid Losing Their 2026 First Round Pick?
Ottawa Senators Radio Play-By-Play Team Won't Travel To Road Games This Season

After skating every day from Thursday through Sunday, the New York Islanders' prospects have the day off on Monday. The final day of Rookie Camp will be Tuesday, before main training camp opens on Thursday.

Later this morning, we will be at the Islanders Charity Golf Outing, where select players and head coach Patrick Roy will be made available to us. We'll see if we get any updates on Semyon Varlamov and Matthew Barzal. 

Training camp on Thursday will be our first look at No. 1 overall pick Matthew Schaefer against adults. It will be the first time we see what Maxim Shabanov can showcase against other NHL players after playing years professionally in the KHL.

Islanders Shabanov Showcasing All The Tools; Do Your Best To Temper ExpectationsEAST MEADOW, NY -- It's hard to temper expectations when talent is clearly evident. While many may be thinking this is about Matthew Schaefer — he's going to be a really special player — it's Maxim Shabanov who stole the show on Sunday at New York Islanders rookie camp.

How will Calum Ritchie fare in his second NHL training camp after making the Colorado Avalanche last year?

While there will be a combination of lines throughout training camp, it will be interesting to see how quickly Jonathan Drouin and Bo Horvat can grow their chemistry, as that's one of two lineup decisions that have been shared with us already.

The other is that Barzal, coming off two separate long-term injuries, will be moving back to center ice with Brock Nelson no longer on the team. Maybe Ritchie, if he proves he's ready to be an everyday NHL center, wins a job, changes that Barzal plan.

Islanders Prospect Calum Ritchie Bulked Up, Ready To Fill Brock Nelson's Role EAST MEADOW, NY -- New York Islanders prospect Calum Ritchie knows how big the loss of Brock Nelson was for the club. Being the big return piece in the Nelson deal with the Colorado Avalanche isn't something the 20-year-old takes lightly. 

The Islanders have never been deeper on offense than they will be entering camp on Thursday, especailly at the wing position. 

With the Drouin and Shabanov signing, the return of unrestricted free agent forward Kyle Palmieri, restricted free agent forwards Simon Holmstrom, Maxim Tsyplakov, and Marc Gatcomb, the trade and signing of Emil Heineman and the return of Anthony Duclair after his hiatus, competition will be at an all-time higher for spots. 

The Islanders have 12 wingers fighting for eight starting spots and a few extra roles: Drouin, Palmieri, Holmstrom, Lee, Shabanov, Duclair, Tsyplakov, Heineman, Gatcomb, MacLean, Engvall, Ritchie (as a winger).

On the defensive side, which isn't as deep, there will still be competition, especially for the bottom-pairing and seventh defenseman role: Alexander Romanov, Tony DeAngelo, Adam Pelech, Ryan Pulock, Schaefer, Scott Mayfield, Adam Boqvist, Isaiah George and Ethan Bear. 

Islanders Matthew Schaefer Welcomes The Pressure; His Comments Following Day One Of Rookie Camp EAST MEADOW, NY -- New York Islanders prospect Mathew Schaefer understands the pressure that's on him afer being selected first overall in the 2025 NHL Draft.

When it comes to goaltending -- if Semyon Varlamov isn't ready -- there's a battle for the backup position between David Rittich and MArcus Hogberg. 

It's an exciting time in Islanders land, and the work has already begun with informal practice skates ongoing before things officially ramp up.  

Who will rise to the occasion? Who will be hitting waivers or heading to Bridgeport after preseason? 

Buckle up for the roster battles. 

The Columbus Blue Jackets have 28 days until opening night at Nationwide Arena. Today, we look at the history of jersey #28. 

Let's take a look.

Tyler Wright - 2001-2006 - Drafted by Edmonton in 1991.

Tyler Wright was a Blue Jacket Original who played 309 games in the early days of the franchise. Wright totaled 109 points for the Jackets and had 149 for his career.

He was famously traded to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim for Hall-of-Famer Sergei Fedorov on November 15, 2005. That was his last NHL season, and he would leave for Switzerland the next year. 

After retiring, he returned to Columbus and was the Dir. of Player Development, and Dir. of Amateur Scouting for 7 years. He held the same positions in Detroit and Edmonton from 2013 to 2023. After taking last season off, he was hired by the LA Kings to be their Dir. of Player Personnel for this upcoming season. 

Zenon Konopka - 2007-2008 - Undrafted out of Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario.

On January 26, 2007, he was traded by the Anaheim Ducks along with Curtis Glencross and a draft pick to the Blue Jackets in exchange for forwards Mark Hartigan, Joe Motzko and a draft pick. He played a total of 9 games for Columbus and had no points. He spent the season as the Captain for the AHL's Syracuse Crunch, where he had 55 points. 

He retired in April of 2017. 

Nikita Filatov - 2009-2011 - Drafted in the first round of the 2008 NHL Draft by Columbus.

Oh, what could've been! Filatov was an uber-talented winger from Russia and was the 6th overall pick in 2008. He played 44 games for Columbus and totaled 13 points. In 2011, he was traded to the Ottawa Senators and only played 9 games.

He would return to Russia, where he played until 2019 and is now retired. He has spent the last few years as the Vice President of the Polyot Rybinsk of the NMHL. 

"Filly don't do rebounds."

Alexandre Giroux - 2012 - Drafted by Ottawa in 1999.

Played in 9 games for the Jackets during the 2011-12 season, scoring one goal. After his time in Columbus, he would never play another NHL game.

He would play in Europe until 2018 before returning to Canada, where he would play until 2022. He played in Poland, Switzerland, Russia, and France. He came back to North America and played three seasons in the LNAH as well. 

Frédéric St. Denis - 2015 - Undrafted out of Greenfield Park, Quebec.

St. Denis would play 4 games for the Jackets during the 14-15 season and would tally one assist. He would never play another NHL game after playing in Columbus and retired during the 2018-19 season.

He played one year in Germany and then came back to play in the LNAH for three seasons. 

Oliver Bjorkstrand - 2016-2022 - Drafted by Columbus in 2013. 

Bjorkstrand played 382 games for the Blue Jackets. Drafted in 2013, Oliver helped the Lake Erie Monsters win the Calder Cup in 2016 by scoring 16 points in 17 games, including the series winner with under .02 seconds to play in overtime. 

Bjorkstrand had 234 points in 382 games as a Jacket. He scored a career-high 28 goals in 2021-22 and had a career-high 57 points. On July 22, 2022, the unthinkable would happen - Oliver Bjorkstrand was traded to the Seattle Kraken. Former GM Jarmo Kekäläinen justified the trade by saying it was because they just signed Johnny Gaudreau and Patrik Laine. It was a sad day for a lot of CBJ fans, especially since the CBJ only got back a third and fourth-round pick.

Bjorkstrand is most famous for his game-winning goal in the 2019 NHL playoffs vs the Tampa Bay Lightning. A goal that will live in infamy for Lightning fans.

In his first season with Seattle, he played a key role in helping the team reach the playoffs for the first time, contributing 20 goals and 45 points. His two-way game and ability to step up in clutch moments made him a valuable addition.

This past season, Bjorkstrand suffered an injury called Compartment Syndrome. This happens when there is too much pressure around your muscles. In Bjorkstrand's case, it required him to be rushed to the hospital at 2 a.m. for emergency surgery to fix the issue.

 The injury is very serious because the fluid and blood get trapped inside the muscle, causing it to swell. If not treated immediately, it can cause major complications, including the potential loss of the affected limb.

Thankfully, in Bjorkstrand’s case, it was caught early and treated. Lightning GM Julien BriseBois said he is expected to make a full recovery and will be ready for the start of the 2025-26 NHL season.

There are 28 days left until opening night at Nationwide Arena.

Let us know what you think below.

Stay updated with the most interesting Blue Jackets stories, analysis, breaking news, and more!

Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News and never miss a story.  

More from THN Columbus

Blue Jackets' Acquisition Of Fedotov Ignites Goalie Battle In Training CampToday, the Columbus Blue Jackets acquired Ivan Fedotov from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for a 2026 sixth round pick. Blue Jackets To Face Marc-Andre Fleury In Pre-Season Game Against PenguinsYesterday, it was revealed that the Pittsburgh Penguins have signed Hall of Famer Marc-Andre Fleury to a professional tryout (PTO), and he will suit up against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sept. 27 in a pre-season game. REPORT: Blue Jackets Trading for Ivan Fedotov?Insider Elliotte Friedman is dropping bombs early on a Sunday morning. He is reporting that the Columbus Blue Jackets will be trading for 28-year-old Ivan Fedotov.