Evening Notes: Cassidy, Dallas, League Expansion
The NHL has publicly backed the Vegas Golden Knights in the Bruce Cassidy situation. Speaking ahead of Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final in Raleigh, commissioner Gary Bettman and deputy commissioner Bill Daly said Vegas is well within its contractual rights to deny rival teams permission to interview Cassidy, whom the club fired in March but who remains under contract through next season. “Obviously, we don’t find it unreasonable because we’re allowing it to happen,” Daly said.
Bettman framed it as a consequence of the long-term deal Cassidy signed. ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski reported that the league stated, “There are contracts in the league that wouldn’t have allowed this to happen. His was not one of them.” Regarding that contract situation, Cassidy told The Athletic today that just for the chance to interview for the current NHL coaching vacancies, he’d forfeit the reported $5 million the Vegas Golden Knights are on the hook to pay him not to coach next season.
Additional Notes:
- In speaking with the media earlier today, Bettman tempered NHL expansion talks stating, “we’re not ready to expand yet, but we are exploring those expressions of interest”, as reported by Cory Lavalette with NSJNews. Bettman has maintained that an interested group needs to check every box: ownership, market, arena, and arrive with a concrete plan before he’d bring it to the Board. The NHL has sat at 32 teams since Seattle joined for the 2021-22 season.
- The Dallas Stars announced a non-binding letter of intent for a proposed new arena and entertainment district at The Shops at Willow Bend in Plano, roughly 18 miles north of downtown, with the letter of intent heading to the Plano City Council on June 8. The lease at the current American Airlines Center run through 2031, putting any move about five years out, and the news landed a day after the Mavericks announced their own plans to leave downtown.
NHL Announces New Format For 2027 All-Star Weekend
After a two-year hiatus from the NHL All-Star weekend, the league and the National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) announced the format for the next season’s event, which will take place on February 5-6 on Long Island at UBS Arena.
It is no secret that two straight NHL seasons, briefly interrupted by international play, the Four Nations Tournament in 2025, and the Winter Olympics in 2026, created a ton of buzz around the sport. The 2027 Honda NHL All-Star Game is going to fully embrace that sentiment. The game, or rather tournament, will feature five different teams: Canada, Finland, Sweden, the USA, and the “World” team. The World team will consist of the best available players from outside the aforementioned four countries.
According to the NHL Public Relations Department, each roster will consist of 11 players: nine skaters and two goaltenders. The NHL and NHLPA will name 30 candidates for each participating team (150 total) for the 2027 NHL All-Star Fan Vote, which opens in December. Fans will then select eight players per team from that pool. The remaining three spots on each roster, one forward, one defenseman, and one goaltender, will be chosen jointly by the NHL and NHLPA.
The tournament will be three-on-three hockey. Each team will play four 5-minute round robin games, which will not have any overtime or shootouts. The point system in the round robin is: 2 points for a win, one for a tie, and zero for a loss. Once each team has completed their four games, the top two teams will advance to play a ten minute final with the winning team collecting a $2MM prize.
In addition to the three-on-three tournament, there will be the skills competition which will spotlight ten of the league’s young stars ages 25 or younger to compete across eigh events. All ten skaters will participate in the following: Fastest Skater, Hardest Shot, Passing Challenge, One Timers, Stick Handling and Accuracy Shooting. The top four players after these events will advance to a shootout. Thereafter, the two finalists will compete in an Obstacle Course Finale to decide the will. The skills competition champion will take home a $1MM prize.
A third straight year of international best-on-best should make for a fantastic weekend on Long Island.
Stanley Cup Final Preview
The 2026 Stanley Cup Final is set, with the Carolina Hurricanes hosting the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 1 on Tuesday night at the Lenovo Center. Both teams are four wins away from hoisting the Cup, and both arrive playing their best hockey of the season. Carolina returns to the Cup Final for the first time since winning it in 2006, while Vegas makes its third appearance in nine years as a franchise, having last lifted the trophy in 2023.
Paths to the SCF
Carolina has been the juggernaut of the postseason. The Hurricanes defeated the Ottawa Senators in four games and the Philadelphia Flyers in four games in Rounds one and two, respectively. In the Eastern Conference Final, Carolina found themselves on their heels in game one coming off a two-week break, and lost to the Montreal Canadiens 6-2. However, the Canes were able to quickly get back on track in ‘gentleman’s sweep’ fashion, winning the next four games and thus deciding the series in five games. Carolina enters the cup with 12 wins and 1 loss in 13 playoff games. Allowing 1.62 goals per game on average, far and away the fewest of any team this postseason, the Canes have smothered opponents defensively while overwhelming them at the other end.
Vegas’s path was very different, although impressive in its own right. After a midseason swoon that saw the Golden Knights lose six of their final seven games heading into late March, general manager Kelly McCrimmon fired head coach Bruce Cassidy on March 29 and replaced him with John Tortorella. Under Tortorella, the team righted itself, captured the Pacific Division title at 39-26-17, and is now four wins away from a championship. The Golden Knights took six games to defeat both the Utah Mammothand the Anaheim Ducks in rounds one and two, respectively. Then in the Western Conference Final everything seem to click and Vegas was running on all cylinders. Vegas absolutely stunned the Presidents’ Trophy winning Colorado Avalanche in a four game sweep, looking unstoppable in doing so.
Vegas last played May 26, Carolina May 30, meaning both teams should be well rested heading into game one.
Head-to-Head
The two teams have never met in the postseason. The Golden Knights went 2-0 in the 2025–26 regular-season series, but Carolina is 9-7 all-time against Vegas. The two regular-season meetings came in a one-week window in late October 2025.
Vegas took the first matchup 4-1 at T-Mobile Arena on October 20, handing Carolina its first loss of the season after a 5-0 start. Jack Eichel, Pavel Dorofeyev, Ivan Barbashev, and William Karlsson all scored for the Golden Knights, with Mitch Marner adding two assists. The teams were essentially even in shots (Vegas 26, Carolina 27), but Vegas’s finishing edge proved decisive. Sebastian Aho scored Carolina’s lone goal.
The rematch in Raleigh on October 28 was a wilder affair, with Vegas pulling out a 6 to 3 comeback win. Eichel, celebrating his 29th birthday, scored twice in the final 4:59, including a breakaway goal off a Barbashev pass after forcing a turnover on Taylor Hall at the blue line. Dorofeyev added two more, Marner notched two more assists, and Tomas Hertl sealed it with an empty-netter. Carolina was depleted: Shayne Gostisbehere left after the first period, Joel Nystrom took a puck to the mouth in the second, and the Hurricanes were down to four defensemen for stretches of the third.
Frederik Andersen started both games for Carolina and surrendered eight goals on 59 shots (.864 save percentage), numbers that look nothing like his current playoff form. In the two games, Vegas saw production from across the lineup: Dorofeyev had three goals, Eichel had three points, Marner had four assists, and Barbashev had three points. Aho was the only Carolina skater with multiple points. With both teams now at full strength, the regular season series carries limited weight heading into the Final, but the formula Vegas used to win remains relevant: finishing the chances they got, capitalizing on turnovers, and forcing Andersen to be perfect.
Key Players
Carolina has gotten production from up and down the lineup, but the Stankoven, Hall, and Blake line has been their defining unit. Hall leads the Hurricanes with 16 points in 13 games and is the third leading scorer in the entire postseason. Jackson Blake has 15 points, and Logan Stankoven has 12, with nine goals. Three of those goals have been game winners in Carolina’s first 12 wins. Meanwhile, the traditional top line of Aho, Seth Jarvis, and Andrei Svechnikov has been quieter than expected but began finding its form against Montreal. On the back end, K’Andre Miller has been a revelation defensively, and Jaccob Slavin continues to be one of the NHL’s premier shutdown defensemen.
For Vegas, this is the Mitch Marner show. Marner leads the NHL playoffs in points (21), primary assists (11), shorthanded points (4), and multipoint games (6), fully justifying the eight-year, $96 million contract he signed after a sign and trade from Toronto last summer. The Golden Knights also boast the postseason leaders in goals, with Dorofeyev and Brett Howden tied at 10 each, and assists, with Jack Eichel’s 16. The supporting cast is the same group of past Stanley Cup champions that built the 2023 Cup roster: Eichel, Mark Stone, Shea Theodore, Karlsson, Barbashev, Brayden McNabb, and Noah Hanifin. Theodore has been the linchpin from the back end with 16 assists in 16 games.
Goaltending
This may be the most goaltending-dependent Cup Final in years, with Carter Hart having played every minute in all 16 of Vegas’s playoff games and Andersen the same in all 13 of Carolina’s.
Frederik Andersen has been one of the postseason’s defining stories. He’s posted a 1.41 goals against average, .931 save percentage, and three shutouts through 13 starts, leading the NHL in all three categories among goalies who advanced past the first round. He remains one of the Conn Smythe favorites alongside Mitch Marner. Andersen’s regular season was uneven, but he’s been a different goaltender since the playoffs began, allowing two or fewer goals in all but one of his 13 starts and giving up just 17 total goals against through three rounds.
Carter Hart has matched him stride for stride. After joining Vegas in December and going 18-4 with a .922 save percentage under Tortorella, Hart has carried that form into the playoffs to the tune of a 12-win, 4-loss record with a 2.22 GAA and .924 save percentage. Per NHL Edge data, he leads NHL goalies who advanced past round one in high danger save percentage at .873, with Andersen fourth on that list at .857. Hart was the difference in Vegas’s Western Conference Final sweep of Colorado, repeatedly turning aside high-quality looks from one of the league’s most dangerous offenses and giving his team a chance every night.
If both goaltenders continue at this level, the series will come down to which team can find one or two more bounces. If either one falters, his team’s championship hopes likely go with him.
Two Paths to the Same Place
On the surface, the Hurricanes and Golden Knights have similarities. Both are structurally sound, defensively responsible teams that have excelled with elite goaltending and proven playoff cores. Dig a layer deeper, though, and they couldn’t be more different in how they actually win games.
Carolina is a volume team. As previously mentioned in the Eastern Conference Final Preview, Carolina has been the NHL’s premier shot-suppression team for nearly a decade under Brind’Amour, leading the league in 5-on-5 Corsi at 59.77% during the regular season (via moneypuck.com) and allowing just 23.9 shots against per game, also a league best. Their aggressive forecheck applies pressure on both the strong and weak sides of the ice, an approach that’s rare in the modern NHL. The result is a team that spends almost no time in its own end and forces opponents into low-danger looks. Through three rounds of the playoffs, Carolina has outshot their opponent in every single game. They overwhelm you with chances and trust that the volume will eventually break through.
Vegas does the opposite. They’ve been outchanced and out-attempted in plenty of games this postseason and still found ways to win. Their 5-on-5 shot attempts percentage was just 48.5 through the first two rounds before they swept Colorado. Where Carolina wins through pressure, Vegas wins through finishing. They lead the NHL in high danger goals this postseason with 34. Howden and Dorofeyev are tied for the most goals in the playoffs (10 each) and the most high-danger goals (six each), while Marner (five) and Stone (four) also rank in the top 10. Per NHL Edge IQ data, Vegas has the highest “Projected Goal Rate” For this postseason (6.62%) and the lowest Projected Goal Rate Against (4.78%), meaning they’re generating the highest quality chances and allowing the lowest quality ones. They have the most goals of any playoff team (58), six comeback wins, and an 8-0 record when leading after two periods.
That contrast sets up the central question of the series. Carolina’s playoff identity has been built on burying opponents under volume, and they’ve done it against three Eastern Conference teams already. Vegas hasn’t faced anyone like them. The Avalanche came closest in terms of possession dominance during the regular season, but couldn’t sustain it once Carter Hart and the Vegas structure took over. Whether Vegas can survive Carolina’s chance generation for an entire series, and whether Carolina can finally finish at a rate that justifies their volume, will define how this Final unfolds.
X-Factors
The X factors for these two teams are linked but operate in opposite directions.
Finishing (Carolina): Carolina’s volume game only works if it produces. The question now is whether both of their scoring lines fire at once. If the Stankoven, Hall, and Blake line keeps producing and the Aho, Jarvis, and Svechnikov trio finds another gear against Vegas’s top defensive pairings, the Hurricanes have more high end finishing depth than they’ve had in years. If only one is producing, the volume alone won’t be enough against Carter Hart and the rest of the Vegas lineup.
Possession Sustainability (Vegas): Vegas has gotten away with being outchanced for stretches of these playoffs thanks to Hart, opportunistic finishing, and Marner driving offense from the wing. But Carolina is a different animal than anyone they’ve faced. If the Golden Knights’ underlying numbers slip too far against the Hurricanes’ relentless forecheck, they’ll be relying on Hart to bail them out shift after shift. Even his historic run has limits.
In a way, both teams have to take a page out of one another’s book: Carolina capitalizing on and creating higher danger chances, and Vegas finding ways to improve their possession game to try to be on par with Carolina. Whichever finds more success in their attempts could see that as being the biggest reason they are lifting Lord Stanley when it is all said and done.
Storylines
Beyond the tactical matchup, several narrative threads make this Final particularly compelling.
- Eichel and Hanifin are chasing USA Hockey History: Both Jack and Noah were on the gold medal-winning United States men’s hockey team at the 2026 Winter Olympics. A Vegas Cup would make them just the second and third American players in history to win Olympic gold and the Stanley Cup in the same year, joining Ken Morrow of the 1980 Miracle on Ice team and the Islanders’ Cup-winning roster that June.
- Brind’Amour finally breaks through: The Hurricanes’ coach had lost three Conference Finals in his tenure (2019, 2023, 2025), and his system’s playoff ceiling has been the central question hanging over the franchise. Twenty years after captaining Carolina to its only Cup in 2006, he’s back in the Final, this time behind the bench.
- Marner’s Toronto exit: After nine years and 741 points with the Maple Leafs without ever advancing past the second round, Marner was signed and traded to Vegas on June 30, 2025, signing an eight-year, $96 million deal. He has responded by leading the entire NHL playoffs in points and emerging as the Conn Smythe co-favorite alongside Andersen.
- Tortorella’s unusual hire and a Devils parallel: Tortorella was hired with eight games left in the regular season to coach the rest of the year and the playoffs, with his future to be determined in the offseason. The closest historical parallel is the 2000 New Jersey Devils, when Lou Lamoriello fired Robbie Ftorek on March 23rd while New Jersey was leading their division, promoted assistant Larry Robinson, and won the Cup that June. A Tortorella Cup would put him in a small club of coaches to win the Stanley Cup after a mid-season hiring, becoming just the eighth all-time, according to Sportnet.ca.
- Staal chasing NHL history. Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal won the Cup with Pittsburgh in 2009 as a 20-year-old third-line center playing behind Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Now 37 and in his 14th season with Carolina, he’s four wins away from a second championship. Per NHL.com, a Carolina Cup win would also see Staal break the NHL record for the longest gap between Stanley Cup wins by any player; Chris Chelios currently holds it at 16 years (1986 with Montreal, 2002 with Detroit).
Wrap Up
This is the most evenly matched Cup Final in years on paper. Both teams have elite goaltending, structural identities, and proven playoff performers. Carolina has been the better team analytically all postseason. Vegas has been the more clutch one. The Hurricanes will try to win the series the way they’ve won the first three rounds: possession, suppression, and trusting Andersen to bail them out on the rare breakdowns. Vegas will try to do what they did to Colorado: weather the storm, finish the chances they get, and let Hart do the rest. Andersen versus Hart may end up being the deciding factor. Whichever goaltender holds his postseason form longer is probably the one whose team wins the Cup. Game 1 drops Tuesday night in Raleigh, and it is shaping up to be one heck of a Stanley Cup Final.
Canucks Sign Ilya Safonov To One-Year Contract
According to a team announcement, the Vancouver Canucks have signed forward Ilya Safonov to a one-year, two-way contract for the 2026-27 NHL season. According to PuckPedia, Safonov will earn an $850K salary at the NHL level and an $87.5K salary in the AHL. Additionally, he’s owed $100K in the form of a signing bonus.
Safonov, 25, was drafted 172nd overall in the 2021 NHL Draft by the Chicago Blackhawks. For a few years, it appeared that Safonov might remain in Russia for his professional career, and the Blackhawks traded his signing rights to the Canucks last year for future considerations.
After an impressive 2022-23 season with the KHL’s Ak Bars Kazan, where he registered 19 goals and 37 points in 64 games, Safonov had a pair of down years. He barely exceeded his scoring output from the 2022-23 campaign, scoring 20 goals and 42 points in 118 games with a +20 rating.
However, the Murmansk, Russia native got back on track this year, scoring 16 goals and 33 points in 68 games with a +18 rating. In the Gagarin Cup playoffs, he tacked on two goals and nine points in 20 games, helping Ak Bars Kazan to the Gagarin Cup Final.
Given how the Canucks are constructed heading into the 2026-27 season, Safonov should be afforded every opportunity to make the team’s roster out of training camp. He’s a natural center, but could potentially move to the wing if it gives him more ice time at the NHL level. Regardless, whether it be in Vancouver or with the Abbotsford Canucks, Safonov will be playing in North America next season.
Central Notes: Sakic, Koivu, Holmes
Following today’s news that General Manager Chris MacFarland would be leaving the Colorado Avalanche to join their division rival, the Nashville Predators, speculation began regarding who would take over as the team’s General Manager in Denver. As it turns out, the search for a new General Manager only took a few minutes.
According to Bailey Curtis of DNVR Avalanche, the Avalanche sent out a public relations memo indicating that President of Hockey Operations Joe Sakic would resume his role as the team’s General Manager. The franchise legend has already served as the team’s General Manager for eight years, and is largely credited with building the Colorado team that won the Stanley Cup in 2022. Although he retained his right to have the final call on roster decisions, Sakic hasn’t formally held the title since the Avalanche hired MacFarland in 2022.
Still, the memo didn’t indicate that it would be a long-term arrangement. It specifically stated that Sakic would be the General Manager through the 2026 NHL Draft and the beginning of the 2026-27 campaign. Colorado could wait until next offseason to promote from within, or hire a General Manager from outside the organization next year.
Additional notes from the Central Division:
- Long-time captain for the Minnesota Wild, Mikko Koivu, is returning to the Central Division — just not with Minnesota. According to a team announcement, the St. Louis Blues have hired Koivu to serve as a European development consultant. The Blues’ press release indicated that Koviu will assist with development plans for European prospects drafted by St. Louis. He has been working as an assistant and development coach for the Finnish Liiga’s TPS, alongside his older brother, Saku Koivu.
- A Chicago Blackhawks prospect is on the move in the OHL. According to a league announcement, the Sarnia Sting have acquired forward Parker Holmes from the Brantford Bulldogs for a 2028 third-round pick and a 2028 sixth-round pick. Holmes was taken with the 107th overall pick of the 2025 NHL Draft by the Blackhawks, and scored six goals and 17 points in 49 games for the Bulldogs this past season.
Aaron Ness Announces Retirement
According to an announcement from the AHL’s Hershey Bears, defenseman and captain Aaron Ness has retired. Ness has a handful of games of NHL experience, though most of his professional days were spent in the AHL.
Ness’ professional career began in 2008, being selected with the 40th overall pick of that summer’s draft by the New York Islanders. Drafted out of the famous Minnesota state high school hockey pipeline, Ness jumped to the NCAA’s University of Minnesota the next season. He spent three years with the Golden Gophers, scoring six goals and 43 points in 111 games.
After his junior season, Ness signed his entry-level contract with the Islanders and began playing for their AHL affiliate, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. During his time with the Islanders organization, he spent most of it with the Sound Tigers, where he was named the team’s captain for the 2014-15 season. He had the second-best production of his AHL career that year, scoring eight goals and 45 points in 74 games.
Additionally, Ness earned an extended look in the NHL with New York. During the 2013-14 season, in a depth role, Ness registered one goal and three points in 20 games for the Islanders, averaging 14:48 of ice time per game. Unfortunately, that relationship didn’t last much longer, and Ness left as a free agent in 2015 to join the Washington Capitals.
The Capitals organization is where Ness enjoyed the best years of his career. From the beginning of the 2015-16 campaign to the 2017-18 season, Ness skated in 18 games for the Capitals while tallying three assists. Similar to his time with the Islanders, Ness spent most of his time in the AHL, this time with the Hershey Bears.
Ahead of the 2019-20 campaign, Ness signed with the Arizona Coyotes and left after two seasons to sign an AHL deal with the Providence Bruins. After his one-year stint in Rhode Island, Ness returned to the Bears on another AHL deal.
Now in his second stint with Hershey, Ness was immediately given a leadership position on the club and was named the team’s captain last season. He helped the Bears capture back-to-back Calder Cup championships in 2023 and 2024.
In total, Ness has a modest NHL scoring line of one goal and seven points in 72 games. Still, he amassed 61 goals and 339 points in 818 AHL games, with another two goals and 19 points in 81 postseason contests. Including his two Calder Cup rings, Ness enjoyed a 15-year career in the AHL, with over half of those being spent with the Bears. We at PHR congratulate Ness on his career and wish him the best in his next chapter.
Free Agent Focus: Detroit Red Wings
Free agency is just over a month away, and teams are looking ahead to when it opens. Even with the UFA crop being thinned out in recent months, there will be some quality veterans set to hit the open market in July, while many teams also have key restricted free agents to re-sign. We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Red Wings.
Key Restricted Free Agents
D Simon Edvinsson – Regarding their internal free agents, Edvinsson will be the most important negotiation for the Red Wings this offseason. Not only has Edvinsson proven that he can handle heavy minutes, but he’s also a flawless partner next to Moritz Seider, something Detroit has struggled to fill the past two years. According to MoneyPuck, of the eight defensive pairings that finished with over 1000 minutes played, the combination of Edvinsson and Seider finished third with a 54.8% xGoals%. He’s mildly struggled on offense, scoring 16 goals and 56 points in 150 games the past two years, but Edvinsson has consistently put his body on the line to block shots, and uses his size and reach to his advantage on defense. On a long-term deal, AFP Analytics projects Edvinsson to sign a seven-year, $61.6MM ($8.8MM AAV). Given their unwillingness to pay anyone more than captain Dylan Larkin‘s $8.7MM salary, it’s far likelier that Edvinsson will sign closer to the $8MM to $8.25MM range, ensuring he remains below Larkin and Seider in the salary cap table.
G Sebastian Cossa – Despite being the subject of trade speculation heading into the offseason, it’s become clear that Cossa has become the heir-apparent in Detroit. The former 15th overall pick has been lights out for the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins the past two years and will likely make the full-time jump to the NHL next season, albeit in a backup role. At some point, several years in the future, the Red Wings will likely be in a position to move one of Cossa or Trey Augustine off the roster, but that’s a ways away from being an issue. Throughout the past two years, the 6’6″, 209lbs netminder has managed a 47-23-10 record in 80 AHL contests with a SV% higher than .910 and a GAA lower than 2.50. Given that he only has one game of NHL experience, it’s likely that the two sides will agree on a one- to two-year deal this summer.
Other RFAs: F Carter Mazur, F Michael Milne, F Amadeus Lombardi, F Alexandre Doucet, F Jakub Rychlovsky, F Wojciech Stachowiak, D William Wallinder, D Eemil Viro, G Carter Gylander
Key Unrestricted Free Agents
F Patrick Kane – Of all the pending unrestricted free agents on the Red Wings, recent reporting indicates that Kane is the only one they have a desire to retain. It’s clear he’s lost a step, but a 19-year career and hip resurfacing surgery will do that to anyone. Regardless, the former MVP has continued to produce as a respectable secondary scorer, registering 16 goals and 57 points in 67 games this past season. During the past season, more injury concerns arose, but it seems that both Detroit and Kane would prefer a one-year deal anyway. Still, given his steady production, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Kane re-up with the Red Wings for an identical one-year, $3MM contract this summer, with another $4MM available in performance bonuses.
F David Perron – Although Justin Faulk stole many of the eyes as the Red Wings’ big deadline acquisition, Detroit also returned a familiar face in Perron from the Ottawa Senators. Unfortunately, all signs indicate that the remarriage will end in another divorce. Perron was nearly unnoticeable in his second stint with the Red Wings, scoring three goals in 16 games with a -9 rating, averaging 13:59 of ice time per game. Given his recent injury concerns and distressing health concerns with his daughter, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Perron hang up his skates this summer. If he does continue to play, he should be able to find a bottom-six role elsewhere. However, after winning a Stanley Cup and enjoying a 19-year career, nobody would blame Perron if he decided to spend more time with his family.
F James van Riemsdyk – Detroit brought in ‘JVR’ last summer in the hopes that he would offer tertiary scoring and a veteran presence in the locker room. Through the first half of the season, that’s exactly what he provided. Heading into the Olympic break, van Riemsdyk had scored 14 goals and 25 points in 49 games, averaging 13:31 of ice time. Unfortunately, he and the rest of the team fell off a cliff after returning from the break. In his final 23 games, van Riemsdyk registered only one goal and six points. He is another bubble player that wouldn’t be surprising to see retire; however, if he does continue to play, the Los Angeles Kings, Winnipeg Jets, and New York Islanders all seem like decent landing spots for the 37-year-old winger.
Other UFAs: D Travis Hamonic, G Cam Talbot, F Austin Watson, F Eduards Tralmaks, D Erik Gustafsson, D Antti Tuomisto
Projected Cap Space
Detroit won’t have any issues making additions this summer. Even if the team spends $11MM to $13MM on retaining Edvinsson and Kane, they’ll still have more than $16MM to use to add to the roster. Although it’ll be difficult to move some bad contracts, the Red Wings could trim even more off the roster by trading Andrew Copp, J.T. Compher, Michael Rasmussen, and/or Mason Appleton. Unfortunately, it’ll be equally challenging to find suitable talent on the free agent market this summer. Detroit needs to prioritize goal-scoring and could likely use a fourth/fifth defenseman to help stabilize the defensive corps. Still, they are free to use the available dollars on the trade market, which is likely something General Manager Steve Yzerman will look toward this offseason.
Photos courtesy of Charles LeClaire (Edvinsson) and Danny Wild (Kane) of Imagn Images. Contract information courtesy of PuckPedia.
Penguins Goalie Update, Future With Skinner, Silovs, Murashov
The Penguins do not have a goalie for the 2026-27 season…yet.
They do, actually, but regarding the two NHL goaltenders that finished this past NHL season for them, both aren’t under contract, and that could be the case moving forward. According to Josh Yohe of The Athletic, Pittsburgh is weighing a few of its options in the crease at PPG Paints Arena for next year. Stuart Skinner appears to be on his way to free agency when July 1 comes around, but that isn’t the Penguins’ only path, per Yohe.
The 27-year-old Skinner is an unrestricted free agent, coming off a 27-game stint in Pittsburgh, having posted a 2.99 goals against average and an .885 save percentage in black and gold. Among goaltenders with three playoff games, he finished 15th out of 18 goalies in goals against average (3.08) and second-last in save percentage (.873).
His Penguins stretch came in the latter half of his 2025-26 season. Prior to the Oilers trading him with Brett Kulak in December of 2025 for Tristan Jarry and Samuel Poulin, he had a 2.83 GAA and an .891 SV% in Edmonton. He also amassed 8.3 goals saved above expected, which was nearly ten stops higher than his -1.5 GSAx tally in 51 games with the Oilers last season.
Pittsburgh leadership loved Skinner as a locker room presence and considered him good enough for his performance; however, one should consider the future in two ways. Yes, Skinner brought major playoff experience to a team that is trying to maximize its elder core of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, and Erik Karlsson, but it’s doubtful he’ll settle for his previous cap hit of $2.6MM from his four-year contract with Edmonton signed back in 2022 on the open market.
The other goalie to consider is pending restricted free agent Arturs Silovs. The 25-year-old Latvian is coming off a two-year deal at $1.7MM ($850K AAV) and saw 39 games in 2025-26. He averaged a 3.07 goals against and an .888 save percentage, adding on a -11.9 goals saved above expected (89th in 2025-26), which is not the most attractive stat line. However, Silovs rebounded in the playoffs with a 1.52 GAA (2nd in postseason) and a .939 SV%, salvaging two wins for the Penguins before the Flyers’ lone goal in Game 6 ended the season for Pittsburgh.
One certainty seems to ring true with the Penguins: Sergei Murashov is ready for the NHL next season. The 22-year old spent the majority of his year with the AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton club, but also saw five NHL games with Pittsburgh. He ended the regular season with a 24-9-4 record, a 2.20 goals against average, and a .919 save percentage (both 3rd in AHL). The AHL Penguins are currently in the midst of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Toronto Marlies, and Murashov has averaged below two goals against a game and, through 12 contests, has posted a .936 SV%.
Murashov is set to end 2026-27 as a restricted free agent, which will be after the third season of his entry-level contract signed back in 2024. The Yaroslavl, Russia native has been under the Penguins organization since they drafted him in the 2022 fourth round at 118th overall. The Penguins have liked his development since he crossed the pond, and according to Yohe, he is on pace to be in between the pipes next season.
So, do you trade Silovs’ rights while the value is high and the NHL is in a window where goaltending is a need for teams? Do you let Skinner go to free agency and re-sign Silovs for less money? Do you keep Skinner, raising the annual number on his paycheck with a lengthy extension to tandem with the young rookie? Kyle Dubas has a load of cap space, around $37.8MM to work with, and a goalie room that shows promise, but how will he play it as the summer progresses?
Photo Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
Draft Prospect Ryder Cali Commits To Providence For 2026-27
According to a team announcement, Ryder Cali has officially committed to Providence College for the 2026-27 season, as first reported by Mark Divver of the New England Hockey Journal.
Cali is a top prospect eligible for the 2026 NHL Draft. The 17-year-old finished his 2025-26 season with 16 goals for 36 points, sixth on his team, the North Bay Battalion, in 47 OHL games. He finished 25th in the OHL among players aged 17 and under in league scoring. Among those players with 30 or more games, he was tied for 12th in points-per-game played. He added an assist at the IIHF U18 World Junior Championships with a +5 rating in five games played for Canada.
The Penetanguishene, Ontario native tallied 11 multi-point games, three of which were multi-goal games this season, and was an OHL Rookie of the Week. He represented North Bay at the Connor McDavid OHL Top Prospects Game in January of 2026, where he scored a goal. He was formerly committed to Harvard University.
The 6-foot-2 forward is ranked 37th overall on the Elite Prospects NHL Draft Guide 2026. He is considered ‘a man amongst boys’ according to scouts, and his game is described in a way that feels ready to develop further at the next level in NCAA and Hockey East play at Providence.
The Friars are adding a forward who wins puck battles, creates space to protect the puck with his body, and is known to provide structured defensive prowess. All these traits give Cali a solid foundation in scouts perpective of the young, 218-pound Canadian forward. He’s considered to have offensive upside with flashes of playmaking skills in not just his ability to find teammates in transition, but also eying scoring chances with passes to the slot.
Cali is joining a Providence squad that finished first in Hockey East last season, winning the regular season conference championship, and has made the NCAA tournament in each of the last two seasons. Head coach Nate Leaman is set to bring in Cali as his eighth roster player from the Canadian Hockey League and fourth on the 2026-27 projected roster from the OHL, joining Beau Jelsma, Ritter Coombs, and Donovan McCoy, according to College Hockey News’ roster webpage. Leaman has taken the program to the NCAA playoffs in eight of his campaigns since 2011-12 and won a National Championship in 2015.
More to come
Predators Hire Chris MacFarland As President Of Hockey Ops
According to a team announcement, the Nashville Predators have hired Chris MacFarland to be the organization’s new President of Hockey Operations & General Manager.
The Predators had been permitted to speak to MacFarland regarding a front office role, as initially reported by Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic and Elliotte Friedman. Friedman also added that Predators owner Bill Haslam met face-to-face with MacFarland last night. The question had come down to what role and title MacFarland would be offered with Nashville, but it seems they’re going to ‘hand the keys‘ to him, and they closed this quickly.
MacFarland is one of three finalists voted in contention for this season’s Jim Gregory award, which is given to the league’s best general manager. He has been with the Avalanche since the 2015-16 season, being promoted to general manager in Colorado after Joe Sakic was elevated to president of hockey operations shortly after the team’s 2022 Stanley Cup victory. That move came from the Avalanche’s yearning to keep MacFarland from interviewing for the Anaheim Ducks open position, later filled by Pat Verbeek. The 56-year-old had previously been with the Columbus Blue Jackets as a director of hockey operations and assistant general manager from 2000 up until the 2014-15 season. He spent the final two years in Columbus as the GM of the Springfield Falcons, the AHL affiliate at the time.
Sakic, according to Elliotte Friedman, will return to the GM role along with his current position as Avalanche President of Hockey Operations.
In a previous 32 Thoughts podcast, it was said that the Predators were being patient in their search and were waiting to ask to converse with a top-tier candidate. The target that Friedman said was logical for Nashville, based on the length of their search, was MacFarland. Before this development, Friedman had spoken on Nashville’s radio show DMase, Vingan & Daunic on 102.5 The Game, saying that the Predators are standing pat for someone who they’re waiting to speak with, whether it be a member of a front office under contract or someone who is running a team that remains in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
This was a development when the Avalanche were down three games to none in the Western Conference Finals against the Vegas Golden Knights. Friedman said that MacFarland wouldn’t likely depart from Colorado unless it was a ‘huge step up’, and added that Nashville might not offer that. He believed that the Predators would ask permission to talk to MacFarland in the event they’re eliminated.
Now that Colorado is in offseason mode, the Predators are taking a swing at grabbing a big front office name that has helped one franchise in the West. Nashville could use that help to get back to its Cup-contending ways that they haven’t seen for nearly a decade. The Predators had been looking for their next leader in the front office after it was announced mid-season that Barry Trotz was stepping down. Before that, they had David Poile, who served as the team’s GM from 1997 to 2023.
The Predators ended up sixth in the Central Division, missing the playoffs by four points in the 2025-26 season. With MacFarland stepping in, he begins his tenure with 12 draft picks in the upcoming 2026 NHL draft, starting with 10th overall and around $27MM in cap space to work with this upcoming offseason. Free agents the Predators will need to assess include the likes of forwards Erik Haula, Tyson Jost, and defenseman Kevin Gravel, rounded out by restricted free agent Justin Barron.
Despite missing the postseason for the past two campaigns, whoever inherits this team has a mix of youth talent among veteran stars in Filip Forsberg, Roman Josi, and Juuse Saros that can be supported in their quest back into the dance while still under contract. The salary cap rising to $104MM benefits everyone, but after the Predators inked Jonathan Marchessault, Steven Stamkos, and Brady Skjei to major contracts, they need to capitalize on the window they have with these notable names.