East Notes: Nilsson, Lundqvist, Blue Jackets

Senators goaltender Anders Nilsson missed the end of last season with post-concussion syndrome and while the team was hoping he’d be good to go when the puck drops on the 2020-21 campaign, it doesn’t appear as if that will happen.  Goalie coach Pierre Groulx told Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch that the netminder is still dealing with the lingering issues and his availability for next season remains in question.  It has now been just over 11 months since Nilsson sustained the concussion and Ottawa seemingly prepared for him not being available next season when they added Matt Murray from Pittsburgh at the draft.  As things stand, barring a quick and surprising recovery from Nilsson, Marcus Hogberg will serve as the backup goaltender to start the season.

Elsewhere in the East:

• Henrik Lundqvist’s time with the Rangers as a player came to an end when they bought him out earlier this offseason and he quickly signed with Washington. However, it appears as if there will be another chapter for him in New York.  Mollie Walker of the New York Post relays some comments from an interview Lundqvist did with the Goteborgs-Posten in Sweden where the 38-year-old indicated that the plan is for him to work for the Rangers in a yet-to-be-determined capacity when he retires.  He added that the role will ultimately be determined by New York.
• One team that has been silent in free agency so far is Columbus. Despite moving out some veterans and losing Gustav Nyquist to injury, they haven’t really added to their roster.  However, GM Jarmo Kekalainen told NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti that they are still looking into the players still available on the open market.  While the Blue Jackets will lose most of their remaining cap space whenever RFA Pierre-Luc Dubois re-signs, both Nyquist and center Brandon Dubinsky are eligible for LTIR so they will certainly have the cap space to make an addition at some point.