Evening Notes: Pavelski, Wranglers, Luypen
The Montreal Canadiens’ success with rookie head coach Martin St. Louis has made its ripples around the league. 2024 retiree and veteran of more than 1,300 NHL games Joe Pavelski confirmed he has spoken with the Toronto Maple Leafs about their head coaching vacancy while speaking to Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News.
Like St. Louis before joining Montreal, Pavelski has not coached at a pro level, instead spending the years since retirement coaching his son’s 14U and 15U teams with the Madison Capitals AAA program. While that won’t lend much experience, there is no doubt about Pavelski’s experience at the top level. He was lauded for his professionalism, versatility, and hockey IQ through 16 years in the NHL – which included four years as captain of the San Jose Sharks.
Pavelski routinely rivaled 60, 70, or even 80 points each season on the back of fundamental offense. That included becoming one of the best net-front presences, and shot-tippers, in the NHL despite a sub-6-foot frame. That experience could path Pavelski into an impactful coaching role – a potential the Maple Leafs will assess through their final rounds of their hiring process.
Other notes from around the league:
- The Calgary Wranglers have hired John Dean as an assistant coach. This move will shift Dean to the pro flight after spending the last eight years overseeing the OHL’s Soo Greyhounds. He led the Greyhounds to five of a potential six postseasons in that tenure – two cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic – though the club couldn’t get by the second round. Dean did oversee multiple NHL prospects in his reign, including top 2026 draft defenseman Chase Reid this season. He also coached Flames players Rory Kerins and Morgan Frost, as well as top 2025 pick Brady Martin. Dean will now move to the ranks he has led many players to, taking on a pro role for the first time in his career.
- The Hershey Bears re-signed forward Jalen Luypen to a one-year, AHL contract for next season. Luypen split the 2025-26 campaign between a loan to the Tucson Roadrunners and an assignment to the ECHL. He proved much more effective in the latter setting, where he scored 14 goals and 37 points in 35 games. Luypen backed that scoring with seven points in 24 AHL games on the year. He rotated through depth roles with the Rockford IceHogs in 2023-24 and 2024-25 – and will now compete for a similar spot with a perennial contender in Hershey next season.
Latest On Flyers’ Off-Season Plans
The Philadelphia Flyers still have ground to gain after breaking into the post-season for the first time in the last six seasons. General manager Daniel Briere sat down with Jackie Spiegel of the Philadelphia Inquirer to build on that achievement next season. He broke down the Flyers’ plans facing multiple in-season additions and pending contracts – but Philadelphia’s top item will be adding a top-six center.
The forward market is slim this season but Philadelphia could find a meaningful addition in a former star. Claude Giroux has yet to re-sign with the Ottawa Senators despite sharing his hopes to play a 20th season. A return to Philadelphia would reasonably be Giroux’s top option if he’s seeking a move. Giroux was the core of the Flyers lineup through the 2010s. He routinely received votes for the Hart and Selke Trophies while leading Philadelphia through their most recent stretch of consistent playoff appearances. Once a century scorer, Giroux potted a career-low scoring pace with 49 points in 82 games with Ottawa this season. Philadelphia will have to take that dip into account, though they could also find a bit of potential by returning the 39 year old to a daily center-role, rather than the rotating role he has filled with Ottawa since 2022.
Philadelphia could also entertain offer sheets – though Briere made sure to point out the relationship consequences that offer sheets bring. Multiple top, young centers are set to become restricted free agents if not signed by July 1st, including Connor Bedard, Leo Carlsson, and Adam Fantilli. The Flyers could find more realistic – and cheaper – options to fill center minutes in Connor McMichael, Mavrik Bourque, or Cole Sillinger. The compensation for a signed offer sheet between $4.68MM and $7MM is one first-round pick and one third-round pick.
Also on the list of pending RFAs is breakout Flyers forward Trevor Zegras. Briere praised the versatility that Zegras brought to Philadelphia en route to a career-high 26 goals and 67 points in 81 games. In fact, the desire to add another center is designed to shoulder the load asked of Zegras and Noah Cates. Briere said that he is not worried about negotiations with Zegras, and that Philadelphia plans to bring both he and defenseman Jamie Drysdale back into the fold. They should have more than enough cap space to fit both back in, with a projected $37.5MM per PuckPedia.
Briere was also confident about Daniel Vladar‘s spot with the team, calling him their MVP and leader through the 2025-26 season. He wasn’t as confident in speaking to negotiations with Samuel Ersson, who posted a save percentage below .900 for the fourth NHL season in a row. The Flyers would be left with prospects Carson Bjarnason and Alexei Kolosov in competition for the NHL backup role if Ersson was left on the wire, unless they sought out veteran experience on the free agent market. While the skater market is thin, there would be plenty of options for goaltending, with Frederik Andersen, Connor Ingram, Kaapo Kahkonen, and Cam Talbot all currently set to hit free agency.
Philadelphia has wind behind their sails thanks to confident steps up from Zegras, Drysdale, Matvei Michkov, and Cam York. Still, the Flyers will need a little more certainty to repeat the 98-point season that landed them in the top-three of the Metropolitan Division. Properly weaponizing their cap space this season could land Philadelphia with that certainty. That challenge will now sit with Briere and his front office, as they look to achieve a checklist of items this summer.
Checkers Sign Luca Fantilli, Three Others To AHL Contracts
The Charlotte Checkers have made additions at every position with a series of one-way, AHL contracts. Forward William Bitten, defensemen Mitch Vande Sompel and Luca Fantilli, and goaltender Vinnie Purpura have each agreed to deals with Charlotte for the 2026-27 season.
Vande Sompel is the only re-signee of the bunch. He has spent the last two seasons with the Checkers after joining form the Chicago Wolves partway through the 2023-24 season. His 2024-25 season was cut to only 13 games by a nagging upper-body injury. He underwent a bi-lateral shoulder surgery to address the issue and returned healthy enough to double his appearances in 2025-26 – despite missing much of the middle-season with brief injuries. His season was marked by 11 points and a plus-14 in 36 games. On the heels of his highest-scoring season since the 2022-23 campaign, the oft-injured Vande Sompel will earn another year in his utility role in Charlotte.
Bitten will make a return to North America on this new deal. He spent the last two seasons in Russia’s KHL – split between stints with Moscow Spartak and HC Sochi. Bitten combined for 40 points in 80 games in his international tour, just below the mark of his typical AHL scoring. He’ll seek the higher marks in this return. The AHL veteran scored 103 points in 178 games with the Springfield Thunderbirds between 2021 and 2024. That includes 21 points in 18 games during the 2022 Calder Cup Playoffs and a career-high 45 points in 65 games during the 2022-23 season. Bitten was a physical and effective role player through four years with the Iowa Wild and three years with Springfield. He also played one assist in four games with the St. Louis Blues in the 2022-23 season.
While Bitten moves back to the AHL, Purpura will seek a promotion from the ECHL. That is where he has spent the last four seasons after signing into the pros out of Long Island University in 2023. Purpura worked his way into the Adirondack Thunder’s backup role in the 2023-24 season, earning 15 wins and a .908 save percentage along the awy. He swapped to the Reading Royals for 2024-25 and grew his save percentage to a .922 in 25 games. The Royals then swapped Purpura to the Savannah Ghost Pirates this season. The move brought Purpura the first starting role of his career, though it brought a dip back to a .910 save percentage in 36 games. On the heels of that step forward, he will now target the Greensboro Gargoyles’ starting role, with the Checkers’ backup role in sight.
Fantilli, the older brother of Columbus Blue Jackets star Adam Fantilli, will be the only newcomer of the bunch. He spent the last four seasons at the University of Michigan where he filled a nightly role dating back to his freshman year. Despite that, his role began near the bottom of the lineup and took one step forward each season. By his senior year, Fantilli filled a top-pair role and scored 17 points in 40 games – just four fewer than he managed in 108 games through the first three seasons of his collegiate career. He is nonetheless an effective, defensive-defenseman whose strong stick could earn him a nightly role in Charlotte.
PHR Mailbag: Blues, Canadiens, Bourque, Tuch, Trade Proposals
Topics in this edition of the PHR Mailbag include veteran players who St. Louis could move this summer, a viable offer sheet candidate, and more. If your question doesn’t appear here, check back in last weekend’s column while we’ll have one more mailbag from our latest callout for questions next weekend.
Blues_Choices: Do the Blues make any moves this summer? Binnington and Kyrou are talked about a lot, but what kind of package would they get back?
Second, why would the Blues trade Parayko as they have no defensemen ready to take his place?
I’m not sure a package deal for Jordan Binnington and Jordan Kyrou would make a lot of sense. More teams would want Kyrou than Binnington so putting them together might actually reduce the number of overall suitors.
Ultimately, a lot of this answer depends on what incoming GM Alex Steen wants to do. Are they rebuilding, retooling, or trying to make the playoffs next year? The answer to that dictates the type of return, at least in part.
With Binnington, I suspect they’d want a goalie back (someone signed for a year or two to be Joel Hofer’s backup, or even push for more of a platoon role) plus something else. I’m thinking a second-round prospect or draft pick as that something, with the Blues retaining on Binnington’s $6MM price tag to help generate that return. I don’t think they want to retain on multi-year deals but one-year rentals would be another story.
Since this isn’t a deep UFA class, I think the Blues would be able to benefit from a stronger trade return if they moved Kyrou. He’s not in the same level as Robert Thomas (when the ask was believed to be three top-15 equivalent pieces) but it might not be much lower given the limited options that might be available. A core forward, a quality prospect, and a first-round pick (that one likely being more toward the back of the first round) could be doable, especially if there are teams looking at his $8.125MM AAV for the next half-decade and forecasting it as becoming team-friendly in a higher cap environment. The prospect would likely be the make-or-break piece. I could see something like this happening this summer if we wind up with a lot of trade activity.
As for Colton Parayko, it’s important to note the mindset at the time that this was a team likely heading for at least a short-term rebuild considering how active GM Doug Armstrong was in trade discussions. In that case, do they need a 33-year-old whose best days will be behind him by the time they emerge from that rebuild? If the answer is no, then the question shifts to asset maximization.
When is the optimal time to move Parayko to generate the best possible return? That becomes the priority over ensuring there’s ample depth to backfill. If you’re not worried about winning too much in the short term, having a ready replacement doesn’t matter as much. In the short term, they’d have given Logan Mailloux and Matthew Kessel bigger roles and see how they fared, then looked at a short-term free agent stopgap in the summer. In the reported Buffalo trade, they were getting someone who could plausibly have replaced Parayko down the road in Radim Mrtka, but he was just going to be a few years away from being ready to be an impact defender. With that being the likely timeline to return to the playoffs had they wound up dealing away a bunch of their core pieces, they’d have been just fine with that timeline.
Jaysen: The Habs need more size in their bottom six, 2nd line C, upgrade on the right-side D. What would be some realistic targets via trade or offer sheet, and what would the cost be for each need? Thanks!
I don’t see the Canadiens being a viable offer-sheet threat. Yes, they have all of their picks available to make them but they don’t have enough salary cap space as things stand to re-sign their pending RFAs and then try to bring in someone of consequence via an offer sheet. Never say never, but I would be surprised if they went this route. Now, onto the three areas you mentioned.
Size in the bottom six is the easiest of the three to get in free agency if they’re willing to pay what’s going to be a high price for that role, given the six-years and $20MM Michael McCarron just got. A.J. Greer and Beck Malenstyn fit the bill while Brandon Duhaime is coming off a down year but profiles as the type of physical player I think you’re looking for. Mason Marchment fits the bill as well but might land on the second line instead of the third and frankly would cost more than what Montreal could afford at the moment.
As for the second-line center, that one’s probably not coming from free agency. There’s a case to make that there isn’t one left in free agency although I could see someone like Claude Giroux fitting the bill on a one-year deal with the hope that Michael Hage would be ready by the spring. That said, I see Ottawa re-signing Giroux at some point. On the trade front, I believe the speculation that if Nico Hischier were to be made available, GM Kent Hughes would make a big offer. But I’m not convinced it’s coming to that point, especially early enough in the summer. Vincent Trocheck could fit the bill but with the speculation that Montreal’s front office isn’t exactly talking much to New York’s could make that complicated. Dylan Strome has been tossed out as a possibility but I don’t see Washington moving him. Mason McTavish would probably fit the bill but are the Canadiens prepared to pay a top-end return with him coming off a down year? (Anaheim has no reason to move him otherwise.)
When it comes to the right-side defenseman, it depends on what they’re trying to upgrade. Are they trying to upgrade on Alexandre Carrier, or the combo of Arber Xhekaj and Jayden Struble on their off-side? If it’s the former, UFA Jacob Trouba would fit the bill if he wanted to play north of the border while someone like Brent Burns would be a one-year stopgap or bridge to David Reinbacher. Connor Murphy warrants a mention too. On the trade front, Zach Whitecloud (who could fit the short-term second-pairing upgrade as well) would be an option if Calgary wanted to trade him while they at least kicked the tires on Rasmus Ristolainen at the trade deadline. If it’s just a depth addition for the third pairing though, UFAs like Radko Gudas or Vincent Desharnais come to mind. Trade-wise, I wonder if they could look at bringing back Johnathan Kovacevic. He held his own in a top-four role with the Devils and with the amount they’re spending on defense, he could be expendable this summer.
baseballpun: Do you think Mavrik Bourque would sign an offer sheet in the $4MM range requiring a second-round pick as compensation? And if not, would he be worth making a $7MM offer (assuming you have the cap space)?
This was something I noted in Dallas’ Offseason Checklist last month as something they’re going to have to guard against. Do I necessarily think Bourque is looking to sign one? No, in an ideal world, the Stars find a way to open up money to re-sign both him and Jason Robertson, though Bourque would likely need another short-term contract to make it work.
But if he were to sign an offer sheet, it would presumably be for a short-term deal anyway. Based on this year’s thresholds, he could sign for up to $4.775MM and the signing team would only owe a second-round pick as compensation. That’s a number that would make life difficult for the Stars but it’s also probably not a number that Bourque wants to lock in at long term; he’d potentially be foregoing a bigger payday down the road by doing so. Just to cover it, an offer at $7.15MM would cost a first-round pick and a third-round selection. From an asset cost standpoint, that seems like reasonable value for a 24-year-old middle-six winger with three years of team control. But he’s not worth that money on a short-term deal. Would a team go five years at that to get two extra years of control? (The divisor on offer sheets is a maximum of five so a six-year offer at $7.15MM would trigger a higher level of compensation which a team wouldn’t likely do.) I don’t think that price tag and term is realistic.
But the $4.775MM on a short-term deal (one or two years) is. In all likelihood, that’s more than what he would receive in arbitration which is why I can’t quite rule out the possibility of him signing one, as rare as they are. A team could also get creative and front-load it with a signing bonus to put the next qualifying offer below the AAV, giving them a bit more security.
A lot would depend on how talks are going early in July. It’s only a few days after free agency starts that the decision about filing for salary arbitration needs to be made so that becomes the pressure point. If things are looking up in talks with the Stars, it seems doubtful that Bourque would entertain an offer sheet. But if they’re not going so well or he’s being asked to be flexible again to make the money for the rest of the team worked, then I think there’s a legitimate chance an offer sheet gets considered.
bottlesup: The Kraken were willing to give 34-year-old Panarin $14MM a year for four years before they lost out to LA. Do you think they’re an overwhelming favorite to go after Tuch, and what percentage would you give them that he’s in Seattle?
To be fair, I think there’s a big difference between Artemi Panarin and Alex Tuch. Panarin is a brand-name player, a premier point producer who has averaged more than a point per game in now nine straight seasons. While he’s likely on the downswing of his career now at 34, he’s still someone a team can structure an offense around, at least for a couple of years. In that sense, an overpayment in terms of money to try to entice him to choose Seattle over another organization is defensible.
But I also wouldn’t interpret that as a sign that this is their strategy moving forward. Tuch is a quality player but he’s not in the same tier as Panarin. Over the last three seasons, he has been around a 30-goal, 65-point player, a total that Panarin has beaten in all of his 11 years. He is a contributor to an attack, not its focal point. Don’t get me wrong, Tuch is a solid player and is worthy of the interest he’s going to receive if he gets to the open market. But I don’t think the Kraken (or any other team) is planning to offer a similar type of overpayment that is so far above market value as they did with Panarin. I suspect what they tried there was more of a one-off.
Seattle has enough expiring contracts (Jaden Schwartz, Jamie Oleksiak, Eeli Tolvanen, and Bobby McMann among them) that they have ample cap space to take a run at Tuch. Do I think they’ll make a serious pitch? Yes. But would I call them a favorite to land him? Not at all. Seattle could offer top dollar but other teams will offer similar money and a better chance at winning in the short term.
Dylan Edwards Receiving Free Agent Interest
Multiple NHL drafts came and went with Dylan Edwards not being selected. However, a strong showing down the stretch could change his fortune. Edwards’ agent, Wade Arnott, told The Athletic’s Julian McKenzie (subscription link) that there are NHL teams interested in signing the youngster for the upcoming season. The interest has predominantly come from Eastern Conference teams thus far.
The 20-year-old had a strong showing in 2024-25, picking up 56 points in 66 games with OHL Erie during the regular season before becoming more productive in the playoffs. There, he chipped in with six goals and nine assists in just nine games but it still wasn’t enough to get him drafted in his final year of eligibility.
Edwards remained with Erie to start the season, picking up 39 points in 32 games before being moved to Kitchener at the trade deadline. With the Rangers, the five-foot-eight winger was even more productive, tallying 24 goals and 24 helpers in 35 games down the stretch. Once again, he found another gear in the postseason, notching 14 goals and 11 assists in 18 games, finishing third in the league in goals and sixth in points while helping Kitchener win the league title. Edwards then finished tied for fourth in Memorial Cup scoring as they went undefeated in that tournament to wrap up the season.
With his major junior eligibility now exhausted, Edwards has committed to play at Quinnipiac University next season. However, Arnott noted that his client prefers to forgo college altogether and make the jump to the pros next season. We’ll see soon enough if a team is willing to give him that chance via a three-year, entry-level contract.
Atlantic Notes: Larkin, Svrcek, Eakins
One of the three teams on Dylan Larkin’s original trade list has made its pitch to get him. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman recently reported on The Fan Hockey Show (audio link) that the Panthers have made an offer to Detroit to try to acquire the veteran. No details on what was included in the proposal were mentioned. That said, it stands to reason that the ninth-overall pick is likely to be a core part of the package, especially since Florida doesn’t have a particularly deep prospect pool to move from. While Detroit’s likely preference is to secure a similar talent to Larkin to aid in their efforts to get back to the postseason, their best chance at maximizing the return would probably come from accepting some future assets. In that case, GM Steve Yzerman might have to do some wheeling and dealing this offseason, turning some future pieces into the win-now help they’d prefer to land.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic:
- Red Wings prospect Michal Svrcek will have a new team next season. OHL Windsor announced that they’ve signed the 19-year-old for the 2026-27 campaign. Svrcek was a fourth-round pick last year, going 119th overall after playing in Brynas’ system in Sweden. Windsor used a first-round Import Draft selection on him soon after but Svrcek elected to stay in Sweden. This season, he played at three different levels, putting up strong production at the junior level (18 points in 11 games) but was held off the scoresheet in the pros across a dozen SHL games and 10 Allsvenskan appearances. Svrcek also suited up at the World Juniors for Slovakia, picking up a goal and an assist in five contests.
- As the Maple Leafs enter the next phase of their coaching search, they’re starting to whittle down their list of candidates. One coach who appears to still be in the thick of things is Dallas Eakins, as TSN’s Darren Dreger recently reported in an OverDrive segment (audio link) that Eakins is believed to still be in the mix. Eakins has some familiarity with the organization having previously worked for them for eight seasons in various capacities. He also has NHL head coaching experience with Edmonton and Anaheim, albeit without a lot of success, as his rebuilding teams played to a 136-210-58 record. Eakins is currently the head coach and manager of Adler Mannheim in Germany.
Offseason Checklist: Boston Bruins
The offseason has arrived for half of the league’s teams that aren’t taking part in the playoffs plus those who have already been eliminated. Accordingly, it’s now time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at Boston.
Last summer, the Bruins doubled down on the idea of bringing in more grit in the hopes of reestablishing an identity. It worked out for them as they bounced back into a playoff spot while Jeremy Swayman returned to high-level form in goal. However, they were ousted in the opening round by Buffalo, showing that GM Don Sweeney still has some work to do with this group, including trying to knock some items off their checklist.
Add Speed
There was a clear game plan for Boston this season. Try to wear the other team down with a heavy style of play and slow the pace down. From there, the grind-it-out approach coupled with strong goaltending would help lead them to victory. They put up 100 points during the regular season so it’s fair to say it worked.
That is, until the playoffs. The Sabres are more of the modern team, with lots of skill and lots of speed. Boston struggled with that in the opening round which was a big part of their exit. Sweeney even acknowledged in his end-of-season press conference that he understands that there’s a need to bring more speed into the organization.
That’s likely to come at the expense of some of the grit that has been amassed, particularly in the bottom six. While a full season of James Hagens will help and could give the top six a boost at some point, that’s not going to be enough to turn around their fortunes. With 14 forwards already under contract for next season (and possibly one more to come), if there is a move to be made to bring in more speed, someone’s going to have to be exiting as well. Meanwhile, replacing Henri Jokiharju with someone who brings more mobility to the table could be considered.
Knowing that the Bruins have a certain identity they want to keep, it wouldn’t be shocking if any moves to add more fleetness of foot were more of the incremental variety. But even that could be a bit of a difference-maker at some point next season.
Re-Sign Arvidsson
One of the moves that Boston made early in free agency was a trade, acquiring Viktor Arvidsson from Edmonton, taking full advantage of their need to open up salary. With the Oilers looking to make other moves, Sweeney had plenty of leverage, meaning they only wound up trading away a 2027 fifth-round pick to get him. Even if he didn’t rebound after a down year, it was a gamble worth taking.
But Arvidsson did rebound. In a big way, no less. A year after putting up his lowest point per game average since his rookie year nearly a decade earlier, Arvidsson bounced back with 25 goals and 29 assists in 69 games, tied for his best full-season point per game rate. He followed that up with a pair of goals in four postseason appearances. That has him poised to hit the open market slotting fifth among forwards in points.
While that’s partially an indictment about this year’s UFA class, it should also be noted that Arvidsson didn’t need big minutes to get there; he averaged under 15 minutes per game. If the metric flips to points per 60 minutes, he’s the leader in the field among forwards. Secondary scoring is crucial for any team to have and if you have a player who fits in the middle six and can still be a core contributor, that’s someone you want to keep in the mix.
AFP Analytics projects that Arvidsson’s market might not be too robust this summer, suggesting that a two-year deal just under $5MM per season could be the right fit. A lot will depend on how much stock teams put into his one year with Edmonton; was that the blip or do they think his 2025-26 performance was the outlier? Given the limited market, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the 33-year-old beat that projection and pick up an extra year or two as well. With around $15MM in cap room per PuckPedia, that’s a price tag Boston can afford to keep him in the fold.
Add Top Center
This particular issue has been a problem for a while. To be fair, the same can be said for a lot of teams. The Bruins tried to solve it two summers ago when they signed Elias Lindholm to a seven-year deal worth $7.75MM per season but he hasn’t cracked the 50-point mark in three years. He can certainly be a contributor but he’s a long way removed now from being the higher-end two-way pivot they hoped they were getting.
Pavel Zacha had a career year this season which was a big boost to their attack. But he’s not a prototypical top center either and he often saw time on the second line. Fraser Minten had a very promising first full NHL campaign but he doesn’t profile as a top liner down the road. Between the three they have, the depth is decent (with Mark Kastelic and Sean Kuraly as more fourth-line types) and frankly, better than what quite a few teams have. But none of them are solving the top-line need.
Yes, Hagens is in the mix as well and he could very well be the long-term solution to anchor the top line. But while he showed some promise in his brief NHL action, between that and his time at the Worlds, he also showed that he’s not ready for that role yet and probably won’t be for a few years. They need someone to bridge that gap at a minimum.
The problem is that the UFA market doesn’t have anyone remotely close to cutting the bill. At this point, it looks like there could be an option or two in play (such as Detroit’s Dylan Larkin) but those players have no-trade clauses while the Bruins don’t boast particularly robust draft pick and prospect cupboards. That will make it much tougher to win the bidding war for any who might become available.
With that in mind, there’s a case to be made to try to swing big on a top-line winger if the center search doesn’t go well. There’s a decent enough floor down the middle that two impact wingers (David Pastrnak and someone else) with, say, Zacha, would make for a solid enough top line. Again, the UFA market doesn’t have much beyond Alex Tuch in terms of legitimate top-line talent and the trade front could be tricky. But if the Bruins want to find another level in a very tight Atlantic Division, this is a box that Sweeney needs to find a way to check off.
Defensive Tinkering
Jonathan Aspirot was one of the pleasant surprises for Boston this season. A career minor leaguer heading into the season, the decision to sign with the Bruins as a Group Six unrestricted free agent worked out perfectly. While he did technically start this season in the minors, he was brought up before the end of October and never looked back. Along the way, he earned a two-year, one-way contract extension for his efforts.
Perhaps even more surprisingly, he established himself as Charlie McAvoy’s primary partner on the back end at five-on-five. That’s a great outcome for him personally but ideally, an AHL defender isn’t the ideal long-term partner for your number one defender to play with. In a perfect world, Hampus Lindholm, Mason Lohrei, or Nikita Zadorov would fill that role.
If they could add another impact left-shot defender to serve as McAvoy’s partner, their back end would get a big boost and allow them to further lean into their desired identity. That would push Aspirot further down the depth chart but he signed his extension so early that his cap hit is barely above the minimum salary. Even if he dropped all the way to being a reserve, they’d still be in good shape. Failing that, a different addition that could move players around and perhaps send Lindholm to the top pairing could also work.
The other area they will want to look at is on the right side. Jokiharju’s first full season with the Bruins was okay but he can certainly be upgraded on. Meanwhile, Andrew Peeke is set to hit the open market and needs to be re-signed or replaced. They also don’t have any in-house options in the minors that are ready to come up yet. It could just be a depth addition or two or they could swing at one of the more prominent unrestricted free agents (Darren Raddysh, John Carlson, Jacob Trouba, and Rasmus Andersson headline the group) but there will be at least some tinkering if not more that needs to be done on the right side.
Photo courtesy of Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images.
Panthers And Penguins Swap Oliver Okuliar And Emil Pieniniemi
The Penguins and Panthers have made a swap of minor leaguers. Florida has acquired defenseman Emil Pieniniemi from Pittsburgh in exchange for the rights to forward Oliver Okuliar. Both teams have announced the swap.
Pieniniemi’s first season in the pros was a rocky one, to put it lightly. Assigned to the ECHL in October, the 21-year-old refused to report and was suspended indefinitely at the time. After more than two months, he ultimately changed his mind and got into 26 games with Wheeling during the regular season, where he had six goals and five assists. He also chipped in with eight points in 15 playoff contests.
Pieniniemi, a third-round pick in 2023, also got into nine AHL games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, picking up a goal and two assists. He has two seasons left on his entry-level contract, with a cap hit of just under $907K.
As for Okuliar, the winger signed a two-way deal as an undrafted free agent with Florida back in 2024 but played exclusively in the AHL. Despite a strong showing there where he had 19 goals and 22 assists along with 119 penalty minutes in 69 games with Charlotte, he opted to return overseas, signing a two-year deal with SHL Skelleftea.
This season, the 26-year-old played in 46 games in his first taste of that league, picking up 15 goals and 14 assists while adding 13 points in 15 postseason appearances. Okuliar also suited up internationally for Slovakia at both the Olympics and World Championship. He has one year of team control remaining as a restricted free agent.
Given how things transpired between the Penguins and Pieniniemi this season, it’s not overly surprising that the organization has decided to part ways with him. With the swap, Florida picks up a prospect for an asset that likely was going to be relinquished for free next summer. It will be interesting to see if Okuliar’s deal has an NHL out clause to see if Pittsburgh wants to bring him back to North America or if his inclusion is just a different form of future considerations.
Multiple Teams Showing Interest In Jake DeBrusk
Jake DeBrusk’s time with Vancouver hasn’t quite gone as planned. He hasn’t been quite as impactful as they were hoping for and the Canucks haven’t been as competitive as he was hoping for. With that in mind, he has been a speculative trade candidate going back to before the trade deadline in March.
It appears that there is some interest in him if Vancouver looks to pursue a trade this summer. Two league sources told Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch that there are a group of teams believed to be interested in DeBrusk, with the Senators believed to be among them.
DeBrusk is just two years into a seven-year, $38.5MM contract, so interested teams must have confidence that he will be able to bounce back after a tough year. This season, he had 23 goals and 19 assists in 81 games. Notably, 19 of his tallies came on the man advantage. While it’s nice to have a strong power play producer, four even-strength goals from a forward making $5.5MM could raise some red flags.
That said, it’s not as if this has been a pattern in DeBrusk’s career. In his time with Boston, he never had more than eight power play markers in a single season with nearly 77% of his goals coming at even strength. In two years with Vancouver, it’s just 35%. That should provide some cause for optimism that he can get back to being a reasonable producer at five-on-five with a new team and a fresh start.
If the Sens were to provide that opportunity, he’d already be joining a power play that was above league average this season, checking in at eighth overall with a success rate just under 24%. That’s also where they finished in overall goals scored, meaning he’d be in an environment where he might not be counted on quite as much as he has been with the Canucks. They also have ample cap flexibility to add him as they enter the summer with more than $16MM in cap room, per PuckPedia.
With things going sideways this season in the standings, it appears as if Vancouver is set to undergo at least a partial rebuild, if not a full one. The 29-year-old probably wasn’t expecting to be in this spot given that when he signed with them, they were coming off a Pacific Division title and a second-round playoff appearance despite being down to their third-string goalie. He was hoping to join a contender and they’re not going to be that for a while.
It’s worth noting that DeBrusk has a full no-move clause through next season so he holds a lot of the cards. But if he feels that a change of scenery would be beneficial, this might be the summer to try to pursue it in a trade market that feels like it is going to be more robust than it has been in recent years. Accordingly, he’s a player to keep an eye on over the coming weeks.
Pending UFA Nathan Clurman Signs In Swedish League
Last summer, defenseman Nathan Clurman signed with Montreal, hoping that he might have a better pathway to NHL playing time. However, that didn’t materialize and instead of testing his luck in July, he has opted to take a different path, as SHL Rogle announced that they’ve signed him to a one-year deal for next season.
The 28-year-old was originally a sixth-round pick by Colorado back in 2016, going 161st overall. He spent four years in their minor league system, splitting time between the ECHL and AHL but never getting a chance with the Avs.
In 2024, he joined the Penguins on a one-year deal through Group Six free agency and was at least able to make his NHL debut, getting into one game with Pittsburgh. Injuries limited him to just 31 games in the minors, however, where he had 11 points so it was one-and-done before he signed with the Canadiens last July.
Clurman was able to stay healthier during the regular season compared to recent years as his 60 games played with AHL Laval was a career high. He managed one goal and ten assists in those outings but then was injured at playoff time, not seeing any action in their second-round loss to Toronto.
While Clurman still qualifies as a developmental player by AHL standards (meaning he wouldn’t count against a team’s veteran limit despite his age), it’s not entirely surprising that he has opted to try his hand overseas. He had a $140K guaranteed salary in his deal with Montreal but given that he has settled in as more of a depth player in the AHL, his best shot at taking a step forward might be by going to another league. Then, if things go well, Clurman could have a case to return to North America next season with a higher spot on a depth chart.