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Panthers Recall Tobias Bjornfot

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With Dmitry Kulikov being placed on injured reserve back on Friday, the Panthers had an open roster spot at their disposal.  They’ve now filled that spot as they’ve recalled defenseman Tobias Bjornfot from AHL Charlotte, per the AHL’s transactions log.

The 24-year-old was an injury recall a couple of times last season, seeing stints with Florida back in January and March last season, getting into 14 games overall where he was held off the scoresheet while averaging just over 13 minutes per game.  For his career, Bjornfot has a goal and 14 assists in 134 NHL appearances between Los Angeles, Vegas, and Florida.

Bjornfot played in three games with the Panthers in the preseason but cleared waivers last weekend, paving the way for him to return to the Checkers.  This stint lasted all of one game and if Kulikov is indeed out longer term as expected, he may be up with Florida for a while this time.  Bjornfot had 18 points in 50 games at the AHL level last season.

With Florida deep into using LTIR (with Matthew Tkachuk, Aleksander Barkov, and Tomas Nosek), they’re not banking any cap room right now, meaning that Bjornfot’s recall doesn’t do much beyond cutting into their current LTIR space.  That sits at just over $1.49MM, per PuckPedia, meaning they have enough cap space for one more recall if more injuries arise.

Central Notes: Connor, Dickinson, Brodin

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While the fact that Kyle Connor received a no-move clause and significant signing bonus money ($41MM) in his eight-year, $96MM extension with the Jets may not seem like a big deal, it was for Winnipeg.  As Pierre LeBrun noted in his latest column for The Athletic (subscription link), those were two elements that GM Kevin Cheveldayoff had never put in a contract before.  However, Connor’s agent, Wasserman’s Rich Evans, told LeBrun that they were looking for a ‘free agent’ deal, one that typically carries those components and the Jets eventually agreed to those.  Now that they’ve done it, it will be interesting to see if Cheveldayoff becomes more open to putting those in contracts or if they’ll be looking at this as a one-time situation.

More from the Central:

  • Blackhawks center Jason Dickinson will miss tonight’s game against Montreal due to an upper-body injury, relays WGN’s Charlie Roumeliotis (Twitter link). Head coach Jeff Blashill noted that the veteran is listed as day-to-day but could miss a week.  The injury occurred partway through Thursday’s loss to Boston.  Dickinson had a tough year last season, notching just seven goals and nine assists in 59 games after setting new career highs in goals (22) and points (35) the year before.  Now in a contract year, this minor setback isn’t a great way to start it.
  • Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin is expected to return to the lineup tonight against Columbus, notes Michael Russo of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 32-year-old underwent surgery to repair an upper-body injury in June and didn’t suit up at all in the preseason or the season opener while recovering from it.  Brodin has long been a key shutdown defender and penalty killing anchor for Minnesota and is expected to jump right back into that role in his return.

Penguins Activate Bryan Rust, Assign Ville Koivunen To AHL

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The Penguins have made a pair of roster moves heading into tonight’s matchup against the Rangers.  The team announced (Twitter link) that they have activated winger Bryan Rust off injured reserve.  To make room on the roster, forward Ville Koivunen has been assigned to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

Rust had been dealing with a lower-body injury that held him out for most of the preseason as he only got into one exhibition contest.  Since he had missed plenty of time by then, Pittsburgh was able to easily move him to injured reserve to start the season and spare another roster cut for the time being.

Last season, the 33-year-old had a career year, notching 31 goals and 34 assists in 71 games, setting personal bests across the board while averaging just under 20 minutes a night of ice time.  Considering that he is making an affordable $5.25MM through the 2027-28 campaign and that Pittsburgh is looking to rebuild its roster, that resulted in him being involved in a lot of trade speculation although no move came to fruition.

Rust will likely rejoin Pittsburgh’s top line alongside Sidney Crosby and Rickard Rakell, a trio that had lots of success last season.  Koivunen had been in that spot as a placeholder to start the year but was held off the scoresheet in his two outings.  Given that he is waiver-exempt, he was a safe choice to send down for the time being.

Last season, Koivunen made quite the first impression down the stretch.  He was brought up at the end of March and got into eight games with Pittsburgh.  While he didn’t score, he picked up seven assists in those outings while playing over 18 minutes a night, making a strong push for a longer-term stint on the roster.  That won’t be happening for the time being but it stands to reason that he’ll be one of their top recall candidates whenever injuries arise or a roster spot is opened up, such as a trade or if Benjamin Kindel is returned to junior if the team opts to not burn the first year of his entry-level contract.  That decision will come once he reaches the nine-game mark which could come within the next few weeks.

Samuel Girard Out Week-To-Week

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A tough day on the injury front around the NHL continues.  The Avalanche announced (Twitter link) that defenseman Samuel Girard is listed as out week-to-week due to an upper-body injury.

It hasn’t been a great start to 2025-26 for the 27-year-old.  Girard missed most of training camp with a lower-body injury, only getting into one preseason game as a result.  Now, he’s set to be out for a little while with this injury sustained just two games into the regular season.

When healthy, Girard has been a reliable top-four defender for Colorado.  Last season, he had 24 points and 111 blocks in 73 games while logging just under 21 minutes a night of playing time while seeing time on both the power play and penalty kill.  He also added three points in their first-round loss to Dallas.

Girard had started this season on Colorado’s second pairing alongside newcomer Brent Burns.  Notably, he’s one of just two left-shot defensemen in their top six, a rarity in a league that typically sees teams carrying more lefties than righties.  Recent waiver claim Ilya Solovyov is expected to take Girard’s place in the lineup for the time being.

It hasn’t been a good start to the season for the Avs on the injury front.  Starting goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood is dealing with a lower-body injury while winger Logan O’Connor is recovering from hip surgery.  They have a pair of injured players with reduced cap charges on season-opening IR in Nikita Prishchepov and Jacob MacDonald and now will have Girard likely heading for injured reserve as well.

The end result from these injuries is that they’re starting to get pretty tight to the cap ceiling with around $1.07MM in cap room, per PuckPedia.  That’s enough to recall a replacement for Girard (who has already been placed on IR to free up a roster spot) but any further injuries before someone comes back could see them having to use LTIR, an outcome they’re trying to avoid after being in it regularly for the past several years.

Pacific Notes: Boeser, Janmark, Sharks

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Brock Boeser played more shorthanded in Vancouver’s season opener than he did all of last season combined.  That might not just be an outlier either as head coach Adam Foote told reporters including Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre that he hopes that the winger can become a regular on the penalty kill, a role he hasn’t held since his college days.  The Canucks lost arguably their top player shorthanded this summer when Pius Suter signed with St. Louis while Teddy Blueger, another regular in that department, is banged up.  Armed with the security of a seven-year deal signed at the beginning of free agency this summer, it appears that Boeser is welcoming the chance to play a bigger role this season.

Elsewhere in the Pacific:

  • Oilers winger Mattias Janmark is expected to return to the lineup in about a week, notes Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic (subscription link). At that time, Edmonton will be forced into a tough roster decision.  The addition of Jack Roslovic gives them 23 players on the active roster, excluding Janmark (and Jake Walman) on injured reserve.  When either is activated, someone will have to be cut while the eventual return of Zach Hyman (likely sometime next month) may necessitate two players getting sent down to get back to cap compliance.  With Janmark due back soon, the first of those decisions will need to be made fairly quickly.
  • In recent years, the Sharks haven’t been a high-spending team and even this year, while they’re in LTIR, it’s due to taking on two significant contracts for injured players whose deals are largely covered by insurance. But as they eventually look to emerge from their rebuild, they’ll have to spend more on active players, upping their actual payroll as a result.  Speaking with reporters Friday including Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News, owner Hasso Plattner indicated that the money should be there when they need it once the team starts playing better.  San Jose has been at the bottom of the standings for the last two seasons and finished fourth-last in 2022-23 and is still in its rebuilding process.  Accordingly, it might be a little longer yet before Plattner needs to increase his payroll spending.

Vincent Trocheck Out Week-To-Week

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The Rangers will be without a key player for at least the next little while.  Mollie Walker of the New York Post relays (Twitter link) that center Vincent Trocheck is listed as out week-to-week with an upper-body injury.

The injury occurred during the second period of Thursday’s victory over Buffalo after a penalty killing shift with the team announcing soon after that he wouldn’t be returning to the game.

The 32-year-old has been a key cog down the middle for New York for several years now as a true two-way, all-situations player.  Trocheck had his best offensive showing back in 2023-24 when he had 77 points in 82 games.  While that output ticked down to 59 points last season, he managed to lead the NHL in shorthanded goals with six.  He started the season anchoring the top line with the expectations that he’d once again be one of their top offensive performers.

In Trocheck’s absence, Mika Zibanejad’s move to the wing will be short-lived as he lined up in Trocheck’s center spot on the top line at practice today, per Newsday’s Colin Stephenson (Twitter link).  Meanwhile, Juuso Parssinen appears to be set to make his season debut with a lineup spot opened up due to Trocheck’s injury.

How the Rangers try to replace Trocheck on the roster is intriguing.  The team can place him on regular injured reserve, opening up a roster spot.  However, they only have $842K in cap space at the moment, per PuckPedia, which isn’t enough to recall any of Brett Berard, Brennan Othmann, or Gabriel Perreault, the players they likely would want to give a chance to.

As long as Trocheck is set to miss 10 games and 24 days, he becomes eligible for LTIR which would allow them to then bring up one of those three players.  However, they’d then stop accruing cap space, further cutting into their already limited flexibility on that front.  Accordingly, it wouldn’t be surprising for them to opt not to bring anyone up to take his spot in the short term.  That would give Parssinen (or Jonny Brodzinski, who’s also on the roster) a chance to make a mark while allowing them to bank enough regular space to recall a prospect over the next few weeks, keeping them out of LTIR altogether.  Either way, they’ll be navigating through a significant loss in Trocheck for at least a few weeks.

Pyotr Kochetkov To Miss At Least One Week

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Carolina is one of the rare teams choosing to carry three goaltenders this season and that depth is going to come in handy early on.  The team announced that Pyotr Kochetkov will be out for at least a week due to a lower-body injury, noting that while it’s not a serious injury, the recovery timeline is longer than head coach Rod Brind’Amour was hoping for.

The timeline of at least a week suggests that Carolina intends to place him on injured reserve.  That designation means that a player must be out for at least a week.  But with a full 23-player roster, putting Kochetkov on IR would allow the Hurricanes to bring someone up from the minors, though likely not a goalie with Brandon Bussi already with the team after a late-camp waiver claim.

Kochetkov has been the de facto starter the last two seasons, at times on merit and others with Frederik Andersen being on the shelf.  Two years ago, it looked like the 26-year-old had taken a big step forward when he posted a 2.33 GAA and a .911 SV% in 42 outings.

However, things didn’t go quite as well last season.  While he made a career-high 47 starts, his numbers weren’t as strong, checking in at 2.60 GAA and a .897 SV% while he struggled in the playoffs, playing to a 3.60 GAA and .855 SV% in just four outings, two of those coming in relief.  In between, he dealt with a concussion and noted after the season that he had been playing through an injury.

With Kochetkov on the shelf, Andersen now becomes the clear-cut starter, a role that he hasn’t been able to hold onto for extended stretches in recent years due to his own injuries.  Over the last three seasons, he hasn’t made more than 33 starts in a single one so if Kochetkov’s absence winds up being more longer-term, Andersen will be tested much more than he has been in recent years while Bussi could get a chance to make his NHL debut as well.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Boston Bruins

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Navigating the salary cap is one of the most important tasks for a front office.  Teams that can avoid total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful.  Those who don’t often see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation for the 2025-26 season.  This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL.  All cap figures are courtesy of PuckPedia.  We’re currently covering the Atlantic Division, first up are the Bruins.

Boston Bruins

Current Cap Hit: $93,323,333 (below the $95.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Fraser Minten (two years, $816.7K)

Minten was brought in last season at the trade deadline as part of the return for Brandon Carlo.  While his ceiling might not be overly high, he’s viewed as a potential third-line middleman and those players can carry some value.  If he can establish himself as a full-timer over the next two seasons, a bridge deal should surpass the $2MM mark while a longer-term pact – if warranted – could run closer to the $5MM territory.  Given that it’s risky to sign lower-scoring players to long-term deals, a bridge deal feels like the most probable outcome at this time.

Signed Through 2025-26, Non-Entry-Level

F Viktor Arvidsson ($4MM, UFA)
F John Beecher ($900K, RFA)
D Jordan Harris ($825K, RFA)
D Andrew Peeke ($2.75MM, UFA)
F Jeffrey Viel ($775K, UFA)

Arvidsson was Boston’s biggest splash of the summer in terms of trying to add some extra scoring help to their roster, acquiring him from Edmonton in what amounted to a cap dump from the Oilers.  Despite that, he’s only a couple of years removed from a 59-point campaign but he has managed just 42 points in 85 games since then.  That’s still respectable production but he’ll need to bounce back a bit if he wants to get a raise next summer.  Otherwise, another short-term contract in this price range should be doable.

Beecher was a regular last season but didn’t produce much, notching just 11 points in 78 games while mostly playing on the fourth line.  That led to this deal, one that came in just above his qualifying offer.  Assuming his role is similar this season, arbitration rights should push him a little past his qualifying offer but it’s likely to be just over the $1MM mark.  Viel has seen very limited NHL action in recent seasons and is likely to remain at or near the minimum moving forward.

Peeke had a decent first full season with the Bruins.  While he wasn’t a full-time top-four player as he was at times in Columbus a few years back, he did spend a bit of time there while stabilizing the third pairing at others.  Right-shot blueliners are hard to come by so even if he stays at this level moving forward, another multi-year deal and an increase into the $3.5MM territory is attainable.  Harris took a cheap contract after being non-tendered by Columbus in June and appears to be their seventh defenseman to start the season.  Given his track record with Montreal in the past, he seems like a strong non-tender candidate for next summer, simply to avoid giving him arbitration rights.  Meanwhile, unless he can play somewhat of a regular role, he’s likely to stay close to the minimum salary as well.

Signed Through 2026-27

F Mikey Eyssimont ($1.45MM, UFA)
F Marat Khusnutdinov ($925K, RFA)
F Sean Kuraly ($1.85MM, UFA)
D Mason Lohrei ($3.2MM, RFA)
F Casey Mittelstadt ($5.8MM, UFA)
F Pavel Zacha ($4.75MM, UFA)

It has been an eventful couple of years for Mittelstadt.  The Sabres decided to move him for Bowen Byram at the 2024 deadline in a swap of younger core pieces.  Colorado then inked him to this deal, feeling he could be their longer-term solution as their second center.  However, he struggled with them, leading to this move to the Bruins back in March.  Still just 26, Mittelstadt is young enough to still potentially be an impact player offensively and has two seasons of more than 55 points under his belt.  If he can get back to even that level, a jump past $7MM per season is reasonable.  However, if his struggles continue, not only will he likely be on the move again within these next couple of years but he’ll also potentially be looking at a dip in salary.

Zacha was the focus of some trade speculation this summer after a dip in production from 59 to 47 points last season.  Still, that’s decent second-line production from a position that’s always in high demand.  Even if 47 is the new range for his output moving forward, Zacha should be in a spot to get a raise past the $5MM mark and a long-term agreement in 2027.  Kuraly is back for a second stint in Boston after signing with them this summer.  He has been a solid fourth liner for most of his career but this price tag provides a reasonable reference point for what his next contract should be; unless he can lock down a bigger role between now and then, it’s going to be hard for him to beat this by any sort of significant margin.

Eyssimont was also brought in via the open market in July with a deal that is his personal best.  A little younger than Kuraly, there could be a bit more earnings upside for him as he only has a couple of full-time NHL seasons under his belt so far.  That said, given that he’s a winger instead of a center, the ceiling for him might check in around the $2MM mark.  Khusnutdinov was brought in from Minnesota last season with Boston hoping that a fresh start could unlock some of the offensive potential he showed in Russia.  He’ll need to show it on this contract as he’s not a prototypical fit in a bottom-six role; if the production doesn’t improve between now and the 2027 offseason, he becomes a non-tender candidate.

Lohrei wound up playing a much bigger role than expected last season due to injuries and showed lots of offensive upside but some defensive warts as well, making a bridge deal like this one the inevitable outcome.  If he can build off that and clean up some of his in-zone concerns, a long-term contract could wind up doubling this price tag.

Signed Through 2027-28

D Henri Jokiharju ($3MM, UFA)
F Mark Kastelic ($1.567MM, UFA)
G Joonas Korpisalo ($3MM, UFA)*

*-Ottawa is paying an additional $1MM per season on Korpisalo’s deal.

Kastelic came to Boston as part of the trade that netted the Sens Linus Ullmark.  He was supposed to simply be a depth fourth liner for the Bruins but wound up playing a few extra minutes per game while being their leading hitter among forwards, earning him this extension in-season.  While this is more than a lot of fourth liners make, the fact he’s a center who wins faceoffs at an above-average clip also helped his value.  That said, given his offensive limitations, there’s going to be cap on his earnings upside that’s pretty close to this.

Jokiharju was added at the trade deadline to see how he might fit in with this group and the early returns were positive enough to land him this contract just before free agency opened.  Still just 26, he has shown flashes of top-four upside but consistency has been an issue.  If he can become a steady 18-20-minute player, he could see a pretty big jump on his next deal, especially as a coveted right-shot player.

After a rough year in Ottawa, Korpisalo was also in the Ullmark trade last year.  His first year with the Bruins was a bit better although his overall numbers were still a little below league average.  Even with the Senators paying down part of his deal, he’s on the pricier side for a backup without above-average play.  He’ll need to turn things around if he’s going to have any shot at a raise on his next contract.

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East Notes: Glendening, Senators, Sabres, George

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While Luke Glendening didn’t land on the season-opening roster for the Devils, that shouldn’t be interpreted as him not having made the team.  Per team reporter Amanda Stein (Twitter link), head coach Sheldon Keefe indicated that the veteran is expected to sign with the team before they depart on their season-opening road trip which begins Thursday in Carolina.  New Jersey has set up their roster for an in-season LTIR placement which should come as soon as Tuesday, opening up the cap room at that time to sign Glendening.  The 36-year-old had just seven points in 77 games with Tampa Bay last season but won 57% of his draws, making him a serviceable specialist on the fourth line.

Elsewhere in the East:

  • While the Senators placed winger Drake Batherson and defenseman Tyler Kleven on injured reserve today, neither have been ruled out for Thursday’s season opener, relays Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. Their IR placements were back-dated to when they were injured in training camp, meaning they technically have already served the required seven days.  Both players skated for about 45 minutes today but haven’t been cleared to return just yet.
  • Sabres winger Zach Benson (undisclosed) and defenseman Mattias Samuelsson (upper body) returned to practice today as they work their way back from their respective injuries. Neither has been ruled out of Thursday’s season opener.  Meanwhile, winger Jordan Greenway (mid-body) and defenseman Owen Power (strain) skated on their own today.  Unlike Benson and Samuelsson, they’re not on the active roster as they were among the long list of players that landed on injured reserve today.  At this point, their availabilities for Thursday appear to be in question.
  • Despite playing in 33 games with the Islanders last season, Isaiah George was sent to the minors today. Speaking with reporters (video link), GM Mathieu Darche indicated that the 21-year-old had a strong camp but the decision was made to prioritize playing time, something he’ll get a lot of with Bridgeport but wouldn’t have received in New York as the eighth defender on the depth chart.

Mammoth Sign Kevin Rooney To One-Year Contract

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While Kevin Rooney’s tryout with the Devils didn’t lead to a contract with them, it helped lead to a contract elsewhere.  The Mammoth announced that they’ve signed the forward to a one-year, two-way contract.  The deal will pay $775K at the NHL while PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that the AHL portion carries a $325K salary.

The 32-year-old has seen NHL action in each of the last nine seasons, the last three of which came with Calgary.  Last season, Rooney got into a career-best 70 games with the Flames, collecting five goals and five assists, while winning a little over 47% of his faceoffs and recording 109 hits on their fourth line.  For his career, he has 32 goals and 28 helpers in 330 career contests.

Rooney has also gotten into 242 career AHL contests over the years, spending time with both New Jersey’s and Calgary’s farm teams.  In those appearances, he has fared a lot better offensively, picking up 34 goals and 59 assists.  However, he hasn’t played regularly in the minors since 2022-23 when he got into 51 games with AHL Calgary.

Utah’s season-opening roster contained the maximum of 23 players.  Accordingly, they will either need to make a roster move to accommodate adding Rooney to their active roster where he’d likely serve as the 13th forward or Rooney will receive a non-roster designation and land on waivers on Tuesday to start the process of sending him to the minors.  Considering he went into camp with New Jersey without a guaranteed deal and accepted a two-way pact from the Mammoth, it would seem like there’s a good chance that Rooney would be claimed if Utah chooses to go the latter route with him.

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