NHL Articles - Page 171

The Seattle Kraken missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2023-24. The ensuing offseason was one of change for the NHL’s second-youngest franchise. Seattle fired head coach Dave Hakstol during the playoffs. And they went all out in NHL Free Agency. The Kraken signed Brandon Montour and Chandler Stephenson to big contracts this summer. The Kraken […]

The Columbus Blue Jackets are looking to take a step in 2024-25. So far in NHL Free Agency, they have kept their business relatively in-house. The Blue Jackets did sign Sean Monahan to a five-year contract when the market opened on July 1. Since then, though, they’ve signed internal restricted free agents such as Kent […]

The Montreal Canadiens are starting to see their core taking shape. Former first-overall pick Juraj Slafkovksy earned a contract extension after a breakout performance in 2023-24. They did miss the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024. But Slafkovsky’s emergence alongside Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield gives Montreal a solid foundation as they continue their rebuild. Montreal […]

The Carolina Hurricanes have seen some players leave town over the years. In NHL Free Agency this year, Jake Guentzel signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning and Brett Pesce joined the New Jersey Devils, for example. However, they will see a former player return to Carolina during the 2024-25 season. The Hurricanes are retiring the […]

After missing the playoffs for the first time in several years, the Minnesota Wild stayed fairly quiet in NHL free agency. The Wild made a few minor additions, but overall, there wasn’t a ton of turnover. Of course, their hands have really been tied by the Zach Parise and Ryan Suter buyouts. The total cap […]

The Montreal Canadiens have been active over the last few days as they signed the rest of their restricted free agents. One player who received a new contract was Kaiden Guhle. The Canadiens signed Guhle to a six-year contract extension that takes effect beginning in the 2025-26 campaign. Guhle finished the 2023-24 season ranking second […]

Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals are gearing up for another long season in 2024-25. The Capitals made the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season, but lost to the New York Rangers in the first round. This year, though, there is hope for better days ahead on the ice. After the game, though, players like to […]

Although the Nashville Predators were not expected to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2023-24 after missing the year before, the Preds went on an incredible run in the second half of the season. Nashville won 16 games in 18 tries to put the hockey world on notice, eventually finishing 47-30-5 and occupying the top […]

The Montreal Canadiens locked up their top defenseman of the future, Kaiden Guhle, on a six-year contract extension on Wednesday. Guhle will receive $5.5 million per year, starting in 2025-26. Guhle remains on his entry-level deal for one more year, but the Canadiens felt it was necessary to sign him to an extension once he […]

The Vegas Golden Knights have been one of the best teams in the league since their debut in 2017-18. Their core included players like Shea Theodore, William Karlsson, and Brayden McNabb, but they were never able to get the team over the hump. It took Kelly McCrimmon bringing in players like Jack Eichel, Mark Stone, […]

Tyler Toffoli has been on a long road leading up to his return to California to play with the San Jose Sharks. It’s a bold move for a player who has only been on contending teams in his career, but we have some predictions about Toffoli’s Sharks tenure. Toffoli began his career with the Los […]

Toronto Maple Leafs fans have been asking for a trade shake-up for years. The core four of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, and John Tavares have been unable to get the team past the second round of the playoffs despite their high salaries. The salaries also hurt the development of their young stars like […]

The New York Islanders have made improvements to their forward unit this offseason. They added wingers Anthony Duclair and Maxim Tsyplakov to improve their goal-scoring prowess but there’s no such thing as too many goals in the NHL. While most trades are done, the Islanders can add goals through Patrik Laine, Nikolaj Ehlers, and Rutger […]

The Vancouver Canucks finally gave Jake Debrusk his wish and got him away from the Boston Bruins after signing him to a seven-year contract at the beginning of free agency. The Canucks signed him to a $38.5 million contract, which gave him well-needed security. Debrusk revealed recently that he asked for a trade twice during […]

The Toronto Maple Leafs made a trio of impact signings on the opening day of free agency to bolster their team’s defense. Their first move was trading for the rights to Chris Tanev at the draft, who they feel is the key to decreasing their opponent’s scoring chances. It took longer than expected, but the […]

The Boston Bruins have come up short in two consecutive postseasons. They advanced past the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round this year thanks to Jeremy Swayman, David Pastrnak, and Hampus Lindholm. However, they didn’t have the depth to defeat the Florida Panthers in the second round. They tried to address that depth issue […]

The New York Rangers are holding on to Ryan Lindgren. The defenseman is agreeing to a one-year deal with the team, per Sports Net Canada. The agreement is worth $4.5 million. The two sides were not close to an agreement until early Tuesday. It appeared the contract negotiations were going to head into arbitration, with […]

The Montreal Canadiens had a big decision with their rugged defenseman, but they eventually signed Arber Xhekaj to a two-year contract extension. Xhekaj and his agent were likely looking for more than the $2.6 million the Canadiens gave them, but his recent injuries were concerning. Xhekaj has gone under the knife two times over the […]

After a mostly unsuccessful run as the Arizona Coyotes — the franchise made just one Stanley Cup Playoff appearance in 10 tries after shedding the Phoenix label — professional hockey will now head to Salt Lake City in 2024-25 and beyond. And Utah HC general manager Bill Armstrong got the green light from new owner […]

Defenseman Arber Xhekaj will not be going anywhere. The Montreal Canadiens announced on Tuesday that they have agreed to a two-year deal with the restricted free-agent blueliner. “Montreal Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes announced on Tuesday that the team has agreed to terms on a two-year, $2.6 million contract (2024-25 to 2025-26) with defenseman Arber […]

The Los Angeles Kings made an extremely bold trade last summer. The Kings traded for Pierre-Luc Dubois in a deal with the Winnipeg Jets. This trade included an eight-year contract extension, as well. However, that trade blew up in their face. And, ultimately, Los Angeles dumped Dubois onto the Washington Capitals this summer. Making big […]

The Anaheim Ducks had a less-than-ideal season in 2023-24. After a surprisingly good start to the season, the Ducks fell apart. Trevor Zegras dealt with injuries for most of the season. And they sold at the NHL Trade Deadline when they sent Adam Henrique to the Edmonton Oilers. Entering NHL Free Agency, though, Anaheim had […]

The Boston Bruins have been kicking the tires on Elias Lindholm for the past two years. Lindholm opted to test free agency instead of signing back with the Canucks, and his reward was a seven-year, $54.25 million contract. He will make $7.75 million annually until the end of the 2030-31 season, making him a lot […]

The Edmonton Oilers came within a single win of the Stanley Cup. In fact, they came within two goals of winning it all in 2024. Unfortunately, they lost to the Florida Panthers in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. The heartbreaking loss didn’t deter them, though, as they entered NHL Free Agency looking to […]

The Minnesota Wild kept Brock Faber’s heart-warming story going by signing him to an eight-year contract extension. The Maple Grove, Minnesota, native played two seasons with the United States National Team Development Program from 2018 to 2020 after playing Minnesota minor hockey. He returned to his home state to play with the University of Minnesota […]

The San Jose Sharks had a terrible 2023-24 season, but things are starting to look up. The Sharks drafted Macklin Celebrini with the first overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. And he has signed his entry-level contract, foregoing a return to Boston University. He won’t be the only top prospect heading to San Jose […]

The Winnipeg Jets had a very impressive 2023-24 season. After signing Mark Scheifele and Connor Hellebuyck to matching contracts, they made the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024. They did so with one of the best goaltending and defensive units in the league during the regular season. In the first round, they matched up with the […]

The Minnesota Wild received a huge performance from rookie defenseman Brock Faber in 2023-24. He emerged as a legitimate top-pairing defenseman and received a similar deployment to the league’s elite rearguards. On Monday, the Wild signed Faber to a massive eight-year contract extension that kicks in on July 1, 2025. As a result, the Minnesota […]

Martin Necas’ name popped up wherever you looked in trade rumors this offseason, but the Carolina Hurricanes decided to sign him to a two-year contract extension. The deal will pay Necas $6.5 million per season, which could be seen as an overpay for a player with one breakout season over the last five. The extension […]

In 2021-22, the Calgary Flames were the class of the Pacific Division, winning 50 games for just the third time in franchise history and looking like a juggernaut heading into the playoffs. Although the run was ended by the Edmonton Oilers in Round 2 — who themselves lost to the eventual champion Colorado Avalanche — […]

The Carolina Hurricanes and restricted free agent Martin Necas have agreed on a new contract that is for two years and worth $6.5 million per season, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. There was a lot of drama and trade speculation surrounding Martin Necas and the Hurricanes this offseason, and it was viewed that the winger […]

The Columbus Blue Jackets and restricted free agent winger Kirill Marchenko agreed to a three-year, $11.55 million contract to avoid arbitration, according to NHL.com. Marchenko’s contract is worth $3.85 million per season, and he was headed for arbitration with the Blue Jackets on Wednesday. General manager Don Waddell spoke on the move. “Kirill Marchenko has […]

The Minnesota Wild didn’t find their way to the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, but that doesn’t mean the future isn’t looking up for them. There’s a lot of young talent on the rise in Minnesota, with one of their top players being defenseman Brock Faber, who just put together an incredibly impressive rookie campaign with […]

The San Jose Sharks were just terrible in 2023-24 — there’s no sugar coating it. Without a single star player anywhere on the roster, the squad was doomed to mediocrity in the fifth year of the rebuild. The Sharks were one of the best teams of the 2000s to not win a Stanley Cup, and […]

Philadelphia Flyers forward Bobby Brink completed his first season in the NHL in 2023-24. It was an up-and-down experience for the young forward as the Flyers experienced a late-season collapse. Brink scored 11 goals and 23 points in 57 games this past season. The Flyers chased a playoff spot until the end, but ultimately fell […]

The Ottawa Senators are trying to get back into the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2025. They came close in 2023, but ultimately fell short. In 2024, they took a step back and weren’t all that close to the playoff hunt. After moves such as trading for Linus Ullmark and signing David Perron in NHL Free […]

The Pittsburgh Penguins fell short of their ultimate goal of playoff hockey in 2023-24. Moves made in the offseason — such as the Erik Karlsson trade and Tristan Jarry contract extension — failed to move the needle. As a result, Pittsburgh is facing a dilemma of sorts with NHL Free Agency in the rearview mirror. […]

The Washington Capitals returned to the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024 after a rare miss the season before, but it was the team’s worst showing in the postseason during the Alex Ovechkin era. The Great Eight himself didn’t record a single point in a series for the first time in his career, the Caps were […]

Despite signing Oliver Wahlstrom to a one-year contract earlier this week, the New York Islanders are still expected to move on from the former first-round pick ahead of the 2024-25 National Hockey League campaign. There were high hopes for the American when he was selected No. 11 overall in the 2018 NHL Draft, but the […]