It appears that Sabres prospect Noah Ostlund has determined where he’ll play next season. Johan Svensson of SportExpressen reports that the center will play with Vaxjo of the SHL in 2023-24 with a formal announcement expected in the next few days. Ostlund was a first-round pick by Buffalo last year (16th overall) and spent the season with Djurgardens of the second-tier Allsvenskan, collecting 26 points in 37 games. Ostlund is currently with AHL Rochester but isn’t expected to play during the rest of their Calder Cup run. He has already signed his entry-level contract but if he plays next season in Sweden, his contract will slide a year and still have three years remaining after 2023-24.
Elsewhere in the East:
- Arthur Staple of The Athletic provides (subscription link) an update on the Rangers’ coaching search, noting that veterans Peter Laviolette and Mike Babcock both had their interviews this week. Staple suggests that Kraken assistant Jay Leach could also be on their radar but was unable to confirm if New York has reached out to get permission to interview him. There are presently six teams looking for a new bench boss around the NHL so once one of the preferred candidates comes off the board, other teams might be looking to finalize their hires soon after.
- Finding a head coach isn’t the only thing that the Blue Jackets have to do with their staff as the goaltending coach position is also open. Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch puts forth a trio of names that could be in the mix for that role, including Michael Lawrence who is a goalie coach in Switzerland and worked with Elvis Merzlikins for two seasons. Merzlikins struggled considerably this season but with four years left on his contract, getting him back on track is of paramount importance if Columbus is going to find a way to get back into the playoff picture.