We’re just about through the first round of the NHL playoffs and there is now more than half the league looking towards next season. With that in mind, many free agents are making their decisions on where to play. We’ll keep track of any minor deals or moves right here:
- Reece Scarlett has been linked to the KHL for next season, with a report indicating he will sign with Dinamo Riga. The long-time minor league defender has spent the last three seasons with the Texas Stars of the AHL, getting the Calder Cup Final with them in 2018. A sixth-round pick of the New Jersey Devils, Scarlett has never gotten a chance to play an NHL game.
- Axel Andersson has been loaned to Sodertalje SK of the Swedish second league to begin the year, the team announced, returning to Europe after just one year in the CHL. The 20-year-old defenseman was a second-round pick of the Boston Bruins in 2018, but found his way over to the Anaheim Ducks as part of the Ondrej Kase trade earlier this year. Given the Duck’s defensive depth – or lack thereof – in the pipeline, Andersson could be pushing for an NHL job sooner rather than later.
- Former NHL defenseman Taylor Chorney will not be returning to North America this year, after signing a contract with EC Salzburg. A veteran of 166 NHl games, mostly with the Washington Capitals, Chorney spent the last two seasons with HC Lugano in the NLA.
- The AHL’s Hershey Bears have announced a one-year extension for big defenseman Eddie Wittchow. Wittchow, a former Florida Panthers prospect, has had an up-and-down pro career and is likely happy to have found a more permanent home. The 6’5″ defender and former University of Wisconsin standout signed with the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds in 2016 and eventually earned an NHL contract from their parent club, the Panthers, the following year. However, another offer did not come and he spent 2018-19 in Finland before landing with Hershey and splitting his season between the AHL and ECHL this year.