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On Monday, Nashville Predators General Manager Barry Trotz announced that he would be retiring at the end of the season. The 63-year-old has been the GM in Nashville since 2023 and also served as the Predators' first-ever coach when they entered the league in 1998. Trotz has an impressive NHL resume that includes a Stanley Cup, two Jack Adams Awards and a Calder Cup.

While the news is still fresh, lists are already being created and debated around who could be the next GM in Nashville. On the most recent 32 Thoughts, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman threw out a bunch of options who could be potential candidates. One of the names listed will be familiar to Vancouver Canucks fans should sound familar, as he currently works for the team. 

After mentioning some experienced options, Friedman listed off what he called "the next generation". These are executives who are on the way up and are projected to be NHL GMs in the future. The list Friedman included Ryan Martin, Evan Gold, Jamie Langenbrunner, Sunny Mehta, Ryan Bowness, Scott White and Canuks assistant GM Ryan Johnson. 

After a successful NHL career, Johnson joined Vancouver during the 2013-14 season. He has worked his way up in the organization and is currently listed as one of the Canucks Assistant General Managers, as well as General Manager of the Abbotsford Canucks. Johnson has been the only GM in Abbotsford's history and also served as the Utica Comets' GM from 2017-2021. 

Under Johnston's guidance, the AHL Canucks won the Calder Cup in 2025. Abbotsford has made the playoffs in each of its four seasons and has helped produce NHL talent such as Artūrs Šilovs, Linus Karlsson, Max Sasson and Noah Juulsen. Not only has Johnson helped develop young players, but also signed key players like Chase Wouters and Jujhar Khaira, who helped the Canucks win the Calder Cup last summer. 

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.

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New York Rangers’ president and general manager Chris Drury’s Jan. 16 letter to fans outlining the team’s plan to retool may have been detrimental to the veteran players, but it provides and opportunity for some young prospects. 

That includes Brennan Othmann, who sees this shift in philosophy from the Rangers organization as a chance to prove himself.

“I guess in a sense, yeah, a little bit,” Othmann said about whether he sees Drury’s letter as an opportunity. “You're still trying to earn, and you're still trying to build a little bit of trust from the coaching staff. I'm still trying to build trust. I'm still trying to learn.”

After getting sent up and down a couple of times to kick off the 2025-26 campaign, Othmann has been able to carve out a more permanent role in the lineup, playing in 10 consecutive games since his most recent call-up.

Going into training camp, Othmann proclaimed that he felt more confident after a frustrating 2024-25 season, during which he failed to score a goal in 22 games for the Rangers. 

That newfound confidence took a tumble, as Othmann didn’t make the Rangers’ opening night roster and struggled in the American Hockey League with the Hartford Wolf Pack out of the gate. 

Following a stretch where the 23-year-old forward went on a five-game point streak down in Hartford, the Rangers brought him back up on Jan. 11, and he’s been with the team ever since. 

“Confidence comes and goes, I think, but I'm just happy to be playing,” Othmann said. “I'm happy to be in the lineup. I'm happy to be with the organization, with these guys on the team, and learn every day.”

The thing weighing on Othmann’s mind and hindering his confidence was the fact that he hadn’t scored in the NHL. 

That changed on Jan. 17 when Othmann recorded his first NHL goal during the Rangers’ 6-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers. 

Artemi Panarin Continues To Skate On His Own And Remains In Good Spirts As He Waits For TradeEverybody is still waiting for Artemi Panarin to be traded, as a deal appears to be imminent. 

“It took a decent amount of games to get that one, so it feels good to kind of get that one off my chest,” Othmann said of his first NHL goal. “It's kind of a weight lifted off your shoulders a little bit in a sense. I was happy to get that one out of the way and move on now and hopefully get a few more by the end of the year.”

Othmann has mostly been playing in a third-line role over these past ten games while also slotting onto the second power-play unit. 

Given the Rangers’ current last-place spot in the Eastern Conference standings and intentions to retool the roster with their sights set on the future, Othmann should continue to see more opportunity through the latter half of this season, as it’s truly his time to prove himself at the NHL level.

Based strictly on their record and the standings, the Ottawa Senators continue to be a long shot to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But their underlying numbers, not to mention their current four-game winning streak, continue to suggest that if any team is capable of making a late, crazy run, it's the Senators.

But GM Steve Staios is almost out of time to decide what his strategy will be at the trade deadline. Yes, March 6th is still over a month away, but thanks to the Olympic break, the Sens have only six games remaining before the deadline.

"I think they are trying to do something there in Ottawa," Sportsnet analyst Elliotte Friedman declared on Tuesday on the 32 Thoughts Podcast. 

"I have a theory on what they've been trying to do, but it's something I have to check because I have a meter of, okay, they were mad at me a couple of weeks ago. I'll just let them calm down before I make them mad at me again."

The word theory generally suggests little more than speculation. But as one of hockey's top insiders, Friedman's theories are generally borne out of good information extracted from his sources around the league.

But the Senators may not be inclined to agree, at least not at the moment. 

When Friedman says the Sens were mad at him a couple of weeks ago, he's almost certainly referring to a podcast comment he made during the Linus Ullmark social media controversy that erupted during the goaltender's personal leave of absence.

Shortly after news of the controversy broke last month, Friedman commented on the situation, imagining what he would do if he were a player in Ottawa named in a rumour like that.

"I am walking into the organization, and I'm saying, 'Get me out of here. I did not sign up for this.' And especially if my family was involved, I would say, Get me out of here right now. That is too much. I did not sign up for that."

Naturally, that was an easy clip to grab, and even his employer's social media team ran hard with it.

"If I'm a player on the Senators, and I'm named there, I am saying get me out of here."

In the latest 32 Thoughts, @FriedgeHNIC and @sportsnetkyle react to the controversy in Ottawa following an anonymous tweet, Jesperi Kotkaniemi, and more.

🎧: https://t.co/TZgY9VDeJ8pic.twitter.com/huLrSsg95W

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) January 9, 2026

However, if you listen to the full conversation on the podcast, Friedman actually appears to be trying to support the Senators and the manner in which they chose to react to the rumour. He was trying to outline how important it was for the organization to let the players know they had their backs, and he provided an example of what he believed would happen if they didn't come out with their fiery statement to reject the rumour.

But even in full context, the Senators surely didn't appreciate the remarks for a couple of reasons.

For one, the last thing the Senators needed after years of mismanagement under the former regime is a top NHL insider putting such a vivid, negative image out into the NHL universe. Getting people to imagine star players marching into Staios' office and barking, 'Get me out of here,' isn't great for business.

Secondly, no NHL player in any city would ever hold their team or their market responsible for an anonymous social media post. Pro athletes aren't always rocket scientists, but they all understand how the internet works.

Meanwhile, Friedman's theory on the Senators' current trade deadline strategy apparently threatens to make the team mad at him again, which is intriguing.

While he's not saying exactly what his theory is, he does think the Sens' goal differential, as opposed to those of other non-playoff teams in the East, might make them a more credible comeback threat and thus, possible buyers.

"You look at the teams that are out of the playoffs right now, as we wake up on Tuesday morning in the Eastern conference, the third best team, Columbus, who's made a great run of it under Rick Bowness, they're minus five. Washington is plus 12, and they're right there, Ottawa is plus seven.

"Everybody else, Florida, Toronto, Philly, Devils, Rangers, they're in the double digits minuses. I think they are trying to do something there in Ottawa."

We won't have to wait long to see if Friedman's theory is right or whether he's annoyed the Senators again.

Steve Warne
The Hockey News 

teve WarneThe Hockey News 

This story is from The Hockey News Ottawa. You can visit the site here or click on one of their latest articles below:

Linus Ullmark Makes 26 Saves In Senators Return
Two-Time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning Attends Senators-Devils Game In Ottawa
Why The Ottawa Senators Should Call Up Top Prospect Carter Yakemchuk
Senators' Difficult Path To The Playoffs: What's It Going To Take?

More information is now available about why Vancouver Canucks winger Filip Chytil did not finish Monday night's game. According to Head Coach Adam Foote, the 26-year-old left after the second period due to "migraines he has dealt with in the past that flared up the last couple of games". Foote also said that Chytil is unlikely to play in Vancouver's final game before the 2026 Winter Olympics on Wednesday. 

Post-game on Monday, there was some confusion about what exactly happened to Chytil. Foote said he "tweaked something", but followed it up with "I hope not" when asked if the injury was to the head. Chytil only played 7:36 in the game, with his last shift ending with 3:55 left in the second period. 

Chytil only recently returned after missing three months with a head injury. He has played six games, which included Monday's loss to the Utah Mammoth. In the six games since he returned, Chytil has zero points and nine shots on goal while averaging 14:23 per night.

The Canucks wrap up their pre-Olympic schedule on Wednesday against the Vegas Golden Knights. Vancouver has yet to play Vegas this season. Game time is scheduled for 7:00 pm PT. 

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.

Latest From THN’s Vancouver Canucks Site: 

Pair Of Canucks Wingers Out Until After The 2026 Winter Olympics

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Why Tom Willander Deserves More Ice Time With The Vancouver Canucks

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 or creating your own post in our community forum.

After Briere addresses Michkov situation, Flyers answer slump with win over Caps originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Flyers showed some resolve Tuesday night after relinquishing a 2-0 lead.

They didn’t unravel and went on to beat the Capitals, 4-2, at Xfinity Mobile Arena.

Owen Tippett, Carl Grundstrom, Jamie Drysdale and Rasmus Ristolainen provided the Flyers’ goals. Drysdale’s marker came on the power play and was the game-winner with 5:23 minutes left in the third period.

Ristolainen iced the game with an empty-netter.

The Flyers (25-20-10) snapped a four-game losing streak and stopped the bleeding from a stretch in which they had dropped 11 of 13 games (2-8-3).

Rick Tocchet said the Flyers had a “really good practice” Monday. He was hoping it would translate to Tuesday night. Prior to that practice, the Flyers closed out January with 10 games — seven on the road — in 18 days.

“A lot of young guys, when they don’t get practice time, it’s tough,” Tocchet said at morning skate. “Veteran teams, you don’t have to practice as much. But I always felt with the younger guys, they need the touches, they need to actually touch it and feel it. Video can only do so much.”

It looks like the practice paid off for the Flyers, who were in dire need of a win.

This was the first of four matchups this season between the Flyers and Capitals (28-23-7).

• About 25 minutes before puck drop, Danny Briere threw some cold water on the smoke surrounding his head coach and prized youngster.

Some noise had heightened recently about Tocchet’s handling of Matvei Michkov’s development, as well as the 21-year-old winger’s conditioning coming into training camp. Michkov’s scoring and minutes are down from last season, when he had a dynamic rookie year.

“One thing I can tell you, first of all, is Matvei Michkov is not going anywhere,” Briere said. “Let’s make that clear. Matvei is going to be here for a long time, he’s going to be a good player here for the Flyers. What he’s going through right now is all part of the learning process.”

The Flyers’ general manager expressed confidence in this all working long term.

“I talk to Rick Tocchet on a daily basis, he wants Matvei to succeed,” Briere said. “He wants to develop him to be the best player he can be. Along the way, there are tough lessons that come with that.

“Him and Matvei, they have a good relationship. Sometimes they’re fiery, sometimes when you’re not winning, things are done and said, but they always come back to the table and they want the best for this team, and Rick wants the best for Matvei.”

Not even six minutes into the game, Michkov executed an excellent read and pass to notch a secondary assist on Tippett’s goal, which opened the scoring.

Michkov finished with 15:54 minutes after playing a season-low 10:21 three days ago.

• With just one game left before the Olympic break, the Flyers now have a little bit of momentum.

They came into Tuesday with a 11.1 percent chance to make the playoffs, according to Hockey-Reference.com’s probabilities report. They’re seven points back of the third-place Islanders in a tight Metropolitan Division.

Tocchet’s club has played fewer games than New York and Washington, two of the teams it’s chasing.

• Dan Vladar spoke like a leader after the Flyers’ 3-2 overtime loss last Saturday afternoon to the Kings.

And he played like a leader Tuesday night. He converted 26 saves on 28 shots and carried the Flyers through some dicey moments with a number of key stops.

Just 2:40 minutes into the third period, the Capitals tied the game at 2-2. The Flyers got stuck in their own end and Anthony Beauvillier scored off a rebound right in front. The initial shot was sent through traffic.

Clay Stevenson, playing both games of Washington’s back-to-back set, stopped 18 of the Flyers’ 21 shots.

Grundstrom’s goal came on a funky bounce and handed the Flyers a 2-0 lead 4:45 minutes into the second period.

Not long after that, the Flyers had a golden opportunity to take total control on their power play. Instead, though, they surrendered a shorthanded goal as a deflected shot whipped around the boards and turned into a 2-on-1 rush for the Capitals.

• The Flyers are back in action Thursday when they host the Senators (7 p.m. ET/NBCSP).

The club then goes 19 days without a game because of the NHL’s participation in the Winter Olympics.