The Knicks are at the top of Jordan Clarkson's list when he becomes an unrestricted free agent and intends to sign with New York, SNY's Ian Begley reported on Monday, citing league sources.
Clarkson, who was bought out of the remaining year on his contract with the Utah Jazz earlier on Monday, will become a free agent once he clears waivers. New York has the $5 million taxpayer exception and veteran's minimum exceptions available to offer Clarkson, Begley noted.
A prolific scorer off the bench, the 33-year-old would help the Knicks, who had the lowest bench scoring in the NBA last year at 21.7 points per game.
The guard spent the last five full seasons with the Jazz, playing just 37 games (nine starts) last year due to a foot injury and underwent a season-ending procedure to address plantar fasciitis in his left foot in late March. He averaged 16.2 points on 40.8 percent shooting (36.2 percent from three) with 3.7 assists, 3.2 rebounds per game in 26 minutes.
He had a stellar 2020-21 campaign that saw him take home Sixth Man of the Year honors when he averaged 18.4 points on 42.5 percent shooting (15.8 field goal attempts per game) and 34.7 percent from three with 4.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 26.7 minutes per game. He averaged 20.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.4 assists in 61 games (all starts) during the 2022-23 campaign.
Clarkson has averaged 16 points on 43.6 percent shooting with 3.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 27.7 minutes over his 753 career regular-season games (231 starts). He has appeared in 43 playoff games during his career (all off the bench), most recently in 2022. He's averaged 11.7 points on 41.3 percent from the floor with 2.5 rebounds to 1.2 assists in 22.2 minutes.
Entering his 12th NBA season, Clarkson has played for the Los Angeles Lakers, who acquired him in draft day trade after he was the 46th overall pick in 2014, the Cleveland Cavaliers, who acquired him in around the 2018 trade deadline in a deal that involved four players and a first-round pick, and Jazz, who acquired him in December 2019.
The Carolina Hurricanes have acquired goaltender Cayden Primeau from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a 2026 seventh-round pick.
The son of former Hurricanes captain Keith Primeau, Cayden was a 2017 seventh-round draft pick by the Habs.
“Cayden is just 25 and coming off his best AHL season," said Carolina general manager Eric Tulsky in a press release. "He adds seasoned depth to our organization at the goaltending position."
Primeau, 25, has spent time between the NHL and AHL over the last six seasons, but has had very strong AHL numbers throughout.
The 6-foot-3 netminder has a 84-44-18 record and a 0.912 save percentage in 149 AHL games, but just a 0.884 save percentage in 55 NHL appearances.
The Canes have a definite lack of depth at the goaltending position so adding a player like Primeau who still has some potential upside seems like a no-brainer move.
Primeau is currently an RFA with arbitration rights.
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The Colorado Avalanche announced that they have re-signed restricted free agent (RFA) defenseman Sam Malinski to a one-year deal worth $1.4 million and goaltender Trent Miner to a two-year contract extension worth $1.55 million with a cap hit of $775,000 per season.
Sam Malinski
Malinski made the Avalanche's opening-night roster in 2024-25 and finished the season with 76 regular-season games played, scoring five goals and recording ten assists for 15 points. During the regular season, he ranked third among Avalanche defensemen in goals, tied for fourth in points, and finished fifth in assists. In his first full NHL season, Malinski surpassed his totals from the 2023-24 season in goals, assists, and average time on ice per game (15:57).
In the first-round series against the Dallas Stars, he played in five of the seven games and earned his first career playoff point in Game 3 by assisting on Valeri Nichushkin's game-opening goal. As he approaches his 27th birthday on July 27th, he looks forward to a promising 2025-26 season that should provide him with even more opportunities to produce than before.
Trent Miner
Last season, Miner played 38 games with the AHL-affiliated Colorado Eagles, finishing with a record of 22 wins, 10 losses, and six overtime losses. He maintained an impressive .918 save percentage and a goals-against average of 2.12, along with three shutouts.
During the regular season, Miner ranked fifth in the AHL for GAA and seventh in both Sv% and wins (tied). He was the starting goaltender in all nine Calder Cup playoff games for the Eagles, recording a GAA of 2.15 and a save Percentage of .925.
On November 15, Miner made his NHL debut with the Avalanche, coming in as a relief goaltender against the Washington Capitals. In that game, he saved 12 of 13 shots, contributing to a 5-2 final score. He earned his first career start on January 8 against the Chicago Blackhawks, where he made 17 saves but faced a 3-1 defeat and took the loss.
With MacKenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood on contract, Miner continues to be the emergency goalie in case either gets hurt and the main starter for the Eagles. However, his position with the team in the future is uncertain.
As top prospect Ilya Nabokov has signed his ELC, although he was loaned back to the KHL for this upcoming season. It will be interesting to see what the playing time is in the 2026-27 season when Wedgewood's contract is up. Does Nabokov become Blackwood's backup? Or does Miner become the backup and Nabokov become the Eagles' starter?
The Nets are trading forward Cam Johnson to the Denver Nuggets for forward Michael Porter Jr. and a first-round draft pick.
The draft pick does not carry any protections and is in 2032, as first reported by ESPN's Shams Charania. The deal can not be completed until July 6.
Porter appeared in 77 games (all starts) last year in Denver, averaging 18.2 points on 50.4 percent shooting (13.6 attempts) with 7.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists in 33.7 minutes. In an up-and-down playoff performance, he averaged just 9.1 points on 39.2 percent shooting (8.6 attempts) with 5.5 rebounds in 31.1 minutes. Porter, who turned 27 on Sunday, was much better during the Nuggets' run to an NBA title in the 2023 postseason when he averaged 13.4 points and 8.1 rebounds in 32.7 minutes over 20 games.
Back issues have bothered Porter in the past, including causing him to miss his rookie campaign after he was the 14th overall selection in the 2018 draft, after back surgery held him to just three games in college. A third back surgery limited him to just nine games during the 2021-22 season.
Porter is due to make $38.3 million for the season and $40.8 million for the 2026-27 campaign before he would become an unrestricted free agent.
Johnson, in 57 games last year for the Nets, averaged a career-high with 18.8 points per game, 47.5 percent shooting, 13.1 attempts per game, and 31.6 minutes per game. He averaged 4.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists while battling several injuries during the season, his sixth in the league.
Johnson played parts of the last three seasons in Brooklyn after he was acquired at the 2023 trade deadline in the four-team deal that sent Kevin Durant to the Phoenix Suns and also brought Mikal Bridges and four first-round draft picks. He signed a multi-year extension with the Nets the following offseason.
The move takes Brooklyn about $17 million below the cap, which includes the $12.1 million free agent hold on Cam Thomas, according to ESPN's Bobby Marks.
The Detroit Red Wings are busy little bees on the eve of Free Agency Frenzy. Steve Yzerman has already taken care of business with two separate transactions on Monday.
Monday afternoon, the Red Wings announced a new contract for forward Jonatan Berggren. The two parties agreed to a one-year, $1.825 million deal.
This contract is a tad heavy on the AVV side, but for good reason. It’s an opportunity for Berggren to show the Red Wings what he can do. For all intents and purposes, it might be his final opportunity.
The 24-year-old put up 24 points in 75 games during the regular season. Berggren averaged 12:59 per game in 2024-25.
Time will tell if Steve Yzerman has any more deals up his sleeve before Free Agency begins on Tuesday.
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Texas State is joining the Pac-12, giving the rebuilding conference the eighth football-playing school it needed to maintain its status as an FBS conference.
According to multiple sources, the deal is structured as a sign-and-trade, with Toronto finalizing the contract before transferring his rights to Vegas ahead of the free agency window. While the contract has been signed, the trade itself is still pending.
Marner was set to enter unrestricted free agency on Tuesday. Instead, he’s expected to join the Golden Knights under a deal totaling $96 million.
By acquiring his rights before free agency, Vegas can lock him into the maximum eight-year term, something not possible if they had waited to sign him on the open market, where contracts are capped at seven years. In return, Toronto receives center Nicolas Roy.
Marner, 28, is a right-winger who has consistently put out top tier results. As a former top-five draft pick, Marner has delivered high offensive output, including a 100-point season and multiple 90+ point campaigns. He sits fifth on Toronto's all-time scoring list with 741 points. He’s a dynamic skater with exceptional vision, creativity, and defensive awareness, earning a Selke Trophy nomination for his all-around play.
He holds several Maple Leafs records, including the longest point streak in franchise history (23 games), and reached 500 career points faster than nearly any Leaf in history. He’s also shined on the international stage, scoring a dramatic OT winner for Team Canada in the 2024–25 4 Nations Face-Off.
The Golden Knights add a proven star to their core, aiming to stay in the championship conversation. For Marner, the desert offers a fresh start and perhaps the ultimate prize that was just out of reach for him in Toronto
Chicago Blackhawks legend Brent Seabrook, who was an elite defenseman on multiple championship-winning teams, has been working in hockey since his retirement as a player.
Seabrook worked with the Vancouver Giants of the WHL initially as an interim assistant coach. He then became a player development coach. In 2024, Seabrook joined Hockey Canada’s Program of Excellence Management Group with the under-20 program.
On Monday, his next endeavor was announced. Seabrook will be a member of the Player Development Staff for the Calgary Flames.
This is a great hire for the Flames. A three-time Stanley Cup champion and Olympic Gold Medalist is always someone you want to have around your young players. Seabrook will help with player development on the NHL Flames and AHL Wranglers.
“We are pleased to welcome Brent Seabrook to our development team,” Flames GM Craig Conroy said. “Our young players will benefit from his years of experience in the NHL and his championship pedigree.”
Seabrook’s past experiences as a player, coach, and manager across many levels make him a worthy candidate with the right pedigree.
“I am really looking forward to getting started with the group of young, talented players in the Flames organization,” said Brent Seabrook. “The future of the organization is very bright and I am thankful to the Calgary Flames for allowing me to be a part it.”
You never know if this is all his way of moving up the ladder to become an NHL executive. He is taking all of the proper steps to go down that road if he pleases. The knowledge he brings to the table, combined with his hard work, will help him continue to excel.
Nathan Lyon is adamant he’s not retiring “anytime soon” despite handing over the significant duty of leading the team song after victories to Test keeper Alex Carey.
The Philadelphia Flyers have won the Ivan Provorov trade in more ways than one.
On Monday, multiple reports indicated that the Flyers' former No. 1 defenseman signed an eye-watering seven-year contract extension worth $8.5 million annually, all while playing second fiddle to Norris Trophy finalist Zach Werenski.
Provorov, 28, is now signed through his age 35 season, earning a big raise on the previous six-year, $40.5 million ($6.75 million AAV) pact he signed with the Flyers on Sept. 12, 2019.
On his new contract, Provorov would have been the second-highest-paid Flyer, trailing Travis Konecny by only $250k.
On defense, the former No. 7 overall pick would be leading Travis Sanheim, and the injured Ryan Ellis, by a healthy $1.75 million.
Many fans took to social media to immediately lament the signing as a drastic overpayment, and given that Provorov is effectively a second-pairing defender, there is some truth to that.
Something Provorov and his agent are banking on, and something the Flyers are planning their own moves around, is the ever-rising salary cap, which is projected to reach $114 million just two years from now.
It's important for players and teams to keep in mind, however, that earning bigger, larger contracts partially defeat the purpose of the rising cap.
To keep up with these increasing demands, the Flyers, the rest of the NHL teams, and the league itself will have to generate more revenue, which comes from games. And fans are already unhappy with the rampant expansion rumors and the rumored increase from 82 regular season games to 84.
The new Provorov contract is absurd and could be a concerning sign of things to come down the road.
In Philadelphia, the Flyers will gladly take Oliver Bonk, Helge Grans, and the other assets they ultimately received in that Provorov trade, especially at that price.
PHOENIX — The planned reset for Tyler Fitzgerald lasted just a week, and it wasn’t exactly stress-free. A few days after he returned to Triple-A Sacramento, Fitzgerald got drilled on the left hand, leaving him with an ugly bruise, but no fracture. Fitzgerald considered himself lucky, and on Monday, he found himself back in the big league lineup after Casey Schmitt went on the IL with a more troubling bone bruise.
On his first night back, the Opening Day second baseman hit a pair of doubles, including one that tied the game in the top of the seventh. It was a needed night for a young player who was looking for ways to get his confidence back.
“It felt good to hit the ball hard again,” Fitzgerald said. “I haven’t done that in a while.”
That was the silver lining for the Giants. The rest of this night fit in with the week that Fitzgerald missed, and really, with the last month-plus of baseball.
The Giants lost 4-2 to the Arizona Diamondbacks, falling to 1-6 in this two-week stretch that’s supposed to be the easiest on their schedule. They have scored just seven runs in four games on this road trip, but this goes much deeper.
Over the last 40 games, the lineup has scored more than four runs just 11 times. In nearly half of those games (16), they have scored two runs or fewer.
The frustration is boiling over, and it didn’t help that a potential game-tying rally Monday was possibly harmed by fan interference. A Diamondbacks fan reached over the wall to grab Christian Koss’ double in the eighth, and when a lengthy review left Koss at second, Rafael Devers and Heliot Ramos struck out. The Ramos strikeout — on a ball that was off the plate — set manager Bob Melvin off. He was ejected before the bottom of the ninth.
“Heliot gets the bat taken out of his hands like that for the second time in the game,” Melvin said. “[The catcher] is literally set up underneath his armpit and the ball is off the plate, outside. That’s a tough one. But look, we’re in this position because we’re not scoring enough runs and doing much offensively, so it gets frustrating.”
Bob Melvin was ejected between innings after arguing with the home plate umpire 😡 pic.twitter.com/CzDCYYqNgb
There are a lot of reasons to be frustrated right now, including the fact that the Giants in many ways wasted one of the best months of Logan Webb’s career. He threw 40 1/3 innings in June and allowed just 10 runs, but the team went 3-3. Webb gave up three runs Monday on a lot of soft contact, but the Giants didn’t give him much support.
A few weeks ago, Webb was asked about the offense’s struggles and pointed out that he’s seen much tougher times. This latest skid, though, is starting to climb the rankings.
“It’s pretty tough,” Webb said. “It’s tough right now, but if we want to go to the places that we want to go to, we have to get through it. We’ve just got to kind of dig deep and show up tomorrow. That’s the only thing we can do.”
The latest loss took place in front of just about the entire front office, but if any changes are coming, they haven’t been telegraphed. Buster Posey has shown a lot of patience this year, and he is said to be exhibiting it now, as well. He had a long talk with hitting coach Pat Burrell before batting practice on Monday, and then he leaned on the rail and watched a team that continues to put the work in every afternoon, but has little to show for it.
Posey already made his big move, acquiring Rafael Devers, but the slugger has an OPS under .700 as a Giant and struck out four times on Monday. The last one came with the tying run on second after the Koss fly ball.
The Giants felt that the ball would have been a double had it not been touched, but it still stung, and not just in the moment. Koss wasn’t going to be able to stretch it even if the ball bounced off the wall, as he had pulled his hamstring earlier in the game. He won’t play Tuesday and there’s a chance he hits the IL.
Already without Matt Chapman, the Giants have lost fill-ins Schmitt and Koss over the past week. It’s bad luck, but all they had to do was look across the field to know that they’ve actually done pretty well in the health department this year. The Diamondbacks lost Corbin Burnes to Tommy John surgery and will play this series without star outfielder Corbin Carroll and catcher Gabriel Moreno. First baseman Josh Naylor was also out of the lineup Monday.
“It happens. It sucks that it happens, but look around baseball and how many guys are going out, especially this part of the year,” Webb said of the latest injury at third base. “That’s why they call it the dog days of summer. It’s tough, but it’s next man up and find a way.”
The Sixers have a deal with Trendon Watford on Night 1 of free agency.
The team has agreed to sign the 6-foot-8 forward to a two-year, $5.3 million contract, a source confirmed Monday night to NBC Sports Philadelphia. ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported the news.
Watford played two seasons for the Trail Blazers and two for the Nets after going undrafted in 2021. The 24-year-old averaged 10.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists last season. He had a down year from three-point range, shooting 33 percent beyond the arc on 2.0 attempts per game.
Watford’s abilities as a big ball handler and passer are positives. He’s a generally versatile player with size and length (wingspan just over 7-2) that it appears could be useful for the Sixers. The team was often smaller than its opponents at most positions last year and just drafted guard VJ Edgecombe at No. 3 overall.
According to Cleaning the Glass, Watford played 11 percent of his minutes at small forward, 73 percent at power forward and 16 percent at center in the 2024-25 season.
Star Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey happens to already be friends with Watford. After his 33-point, 12-assist performance in the Sixers’ Christmas win last season over the Celtics, Maxey shared that Watford motivated him.
“Watford’s always messing with me in Brooklyn like, ‘Yeah, you’ve played (well), done all these nice things in the playoffs and in the Garden, but can you play (well) on Christmas when you want to be with your family?’ He calls me all the time messing with me,” Maxey said.
The Ottawa Senators have signed goaltender Leevi Meriläinen to a one-year, one-way contract extension worth an average annual value of $1.05 million.
Meriläinen, 22, split the 2024–25 season between Ottawa and their AHL affiliate in Belleville. In 37 games with Belleville, he posted an 18-12-7 record along with a 2.37 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage.
He also saw action in 12 games for the Senators, putting up even better numbers than his AHL performance. It was especially impressive for such a young goaltender with limited NHL experience. The Oulu, Finland native went 8-3-1 with a 1.99 GAA, a .925 save percentage, and three shutouts. He even had a fourth shutout in the bag through regulation, but lost it in overtime against Washington.
To recap, that makes one-third of Merilainen's 12 games where the opponent couldn't score on him in regulation. His ability to hold the fort during such a bad run of injuries to the goalies ahead of him on the depth chart was a big reason Ottawa managed to clinch its first playoff spot in eight years.
Now that the Senators have three goaltenders—Meriläinen, Mads Søgaard, and Linus Ullmark—all on one-way contracts, this likely signals the end of Anton Forsberg’s time here after four and a half years with the club. Forsberg is officially a UFA as of tomorrow.
The question now becomes: Who will back up Ullmark this season? Will Meriläinen continue his rise and earn the job? Could Søgaard stay healthy, have a big camp and get the nod? Or might the club look to add a more experienced veteran via free agency or trade this summer, someone who's been around the block a little more?
It should be noted that both goalies spent time on the injury list last season. In Ottawa, who didn't? But Sogaard missed the most action, playing only 10 games all season, two of them in the NHL.
Meriläinen was drafted 71st overall by the Senators in the third round of the 2020 NHL Draft. He was the third-rounder they got in the Dylan DeMelo trade, so there's a chance he can still salvage what was then a pretty underwhelming return for what could have been an important player for them.
In all, the young Finn has appeared in 14 NHL games and 65 AHL contests to date. In those 65 AHL games, he holds a 31-21-8 record with a 2.53 GAA and a .912 save percentage.
When the New York Islanders traded Noah Dobson to the
Montreal Canadiens, they gained some cap flexibility, and they wasted no time
utilizing it. On Monday afternoon, Mathieu Darche made his first big signing,
or at least the first he intended to keep, when he put pen to paper with former
Hab Alexander Romanov.
The 25-year-old left-handed defenseman is on Long Island to
stay; he has signed an eight-year contract extension with an annual average
value of $ 6.25 million. Romanov was initially drafted by the Canadiens in the
second round of the 2018 draft with the 38th pick overall. Back
then, the pick was considered a reach, but the young Russian has gained a lot
of respect around the league.
At the 2022 draft, the Canadiens sent him to the Islanders
for a first-round pick to flip the pick to the Chicago Blackhawks in the Kirby
Dach trade. Since then, he has become a fixture on the Isles’ blueline.
In 64 games this season, he put up 20 points and picked up
20 penalty minutes while landing 147 hits. A rugged defenseman who doesn’t shy
away from physical play, Romanov saw over 22 minutes of ice time on average
this season and skated alongside Dobson on the Isles’ first pairing.
While Romanov must have been celebrating, the situation was
much different for another former Canadiens’ defenseman. The Columbus Blue
Jackets did not extend a qualifying offer to Jordan Harris and will therefore
become an unrestricted free agent at noon on July 1st.
Harris was acquired from the Canadiens in exchange for
sniper Patrik Laine and a 2026 second-round pick. This season, he appeared in
only 33 games with the Ohio outfit, contributing five points while averaging
just 11:23 of ice time. In his last season in Montreal, he was skating just
under 17 minutes and 30 seconds a night.
Photo credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
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Brad Marchand reportedly won't be hitting NHL free agency after all.
The 37-year-old forward—a pending unrestricted free agent on July 1—appears to have signed a six-year extension with the Florida Panthers, per TSN and The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun. The AAV of the deal is unknown, but Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reports it could be a $32 million deal in total.
Marchand was set to be one of the more coveted players on the free-agent market, with Toronto reportedly being one of the frontrunners for the veteran forward. That doesn't happen now, though, with Marchand re-upping with the Stanley Cup-winning Panthers.
The Halifax, Nova Scotia native scored 10 goals and 10 assists in 23 playoff games with Florida after joining the club at the trade deadline via the Boston Bruins. Among the teams reportedly interested in his services in free agency were Toronto, Boston, Florida, and the Utah Mammoth.
With Marchand now locked in with the Panthers, Toronto needs to look elsewhere for a forward, potentially the trade market. Earlier Monday, the Maple Leafs acquired Matias Maccelli from Utah for a conditional third-round draft pick in 2027.
The pick could convert to a second-round draft pick in 2029, only if Maccelli records at least 51 points next season. The 24-year-old has one year left on his contract with an annual average value of $3.425 million.
The Maple Leafs have also reportedly traded Mitch Marner's negotiation rights to the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for Nic Roy, per Friedman. Marner reportedly signed an eight-year deal with the club at an AAV of $12 million.
