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Grigori Denisenko Linked To KHL

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Once viewed as a key prospect for Florida, Grigori Denisenko’s stock has slid in recent years, even after a move to Vegas.  Now, it appears the unrestricted free agent could be heading back home as Artur Khairullin of Sport-Express reports (Telegram link) that the winger is in contract talks with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl of the KHL.

The 25-year-old was a first-round pick by the Panthers back in 2018, going 15th overall after showing promise in Yaroslav’s minor league system at the MHL level.  Denisenko made the jump to the KHL level the following year and spent two seasons there before coming to North America.

Denisenko spent most of his time with Florida in the minors, notching 63 points in 101 games over parts of three seasons while also getting into 26 games with the Panthers.  However, they waived him in training camp in 2023 with Vegas putting in a claim, picking up the two seasons of his one-way contract in the process.

The change of scenery didn’t help Denisenko stay in the NHL for long as just one day later, he was back on waivers with Florida declining to place a claim to take him back.

Denisenko played in just seven games for the Golden Knights over those two years, with only one of those coming last season.  He notched 10 goals and 14 assists in 42 games with AHL Henderson in 2024-25 before being moved to Nashville for future considerations back in February.  But the change of scenery didn’t yield any NHL playing time as Denisenko stayed in the minors, picking up 15 points in 23 games with Milwaukee.

Denisenko has actually seen NHL action in five straight years, his only five seasons in North America.  But the total of those outings was only 33 appearances, meaning that Denisenko qualified for Group Six unrestricted free agency this summer.  Rather than try to land a two-way deal with another NHL team in the hopes of earning an in-season recall while injuries arise, it appears he has decided that returning home to the program he had success with earlier in his career makes the most sense.

Kings To Ramp Up Extension Talks With Adrian Kempe

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Kings forward Adrian Kempe is now eligible for a contract extension and is currently slated to be one of the better options in a 2026 UFA pool.  In an appearance on Sirius XM NHL Network Radio earlier this week (Twitter link), GM Ken Holland acknowledged that he’d like to get a deal done with Kempe and intends to ramp up discussions on that front soon.

The 28-year-old was a first-round pick by Los Angeles in 2014, going 29th overall.  At the time, he was playing a regular role in the SHL which is impressive in itself for a draft-eligible player but Kempe wasn’t producing much offensively.  Accordingly, one of the bigger questions at the time was around his potential to become a legitimate threat offensively, complementing his strong defensive game.

It has taken a while but Kempe has done just that.  After having limited offensive production in the minors soon after being drafted with AHL Manchester and his first few seasons with Los Angeles, Kempe had a breakout year in 2021-22, notching 35 goals and making his first (and only) All-Star appearance.  Considering his sluggish production beforehand, it was fair to question whether this was a blip or a sign of things to come so the two sides negotiated a four-year, $22MM contract that summer, one that bought the Kings two years of extra club control.

Kempe has certainly outperformed that contract in the first three seasons of it.  He has notched at least 67 points in each one and is coming off a 35-goal, 73-point campaign in 2024-25, one that saw him edge past 19 minutes per night of playing time, a career best.  Kempe has also been quite productive in the playoffs over that stretch, potting 13 goals and 10 assists in 17 postseason games, all against Edmonton.  Suffice it to say, he’s looking at a substantial raise next time out.

Earlier this offseason, AFP Analytics projected a seven-year, $64.225MM deal for Kempe, one that would carry a $9.175MM AAV.  When this contract kicks in for the 2026-27 campaign, the salary cap is expected to be $104MM at that time, a jump of $8.5MM.  This year, the biggest contract for a winger was Nikolaj Ehlers’ six-year, $51MM deal with Carolina (a cap hit of $8.5MM) so it would make sense that Kempe’s number should check in a bit above that, at least based on the way the market has operated this summer.

A contract in that price range would make Kempe their highest-paid forward and second-highest-paid player behind defenseman Drew Doughty.  With Kempe being among several contracts set to expire next summer, the Kings have nearly $38MM in room for that season, per PuckPedia, so Holland will have plenty of flexibility to work with to get a deal done for his top scorer from 2024-25.

East Notes: Panarin, Senators, Prokhorov

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Players in the final year of a multi-year contract are now eligible to sign contract extensions.  A few have but most of the headline names in the 2026 UFA class have yet to do so, including Rangers winger Artemi Panarin.  Vincent Z. Mercogliano of the Rockland/Westchester Journal News argues that New York should hold off on trying to get the 33-year-old locked up to a new deal right away, wondering if there might be an opportunity to get a younger top-liner on the open market next summer when they will have a significant amount of cap space.  Panarin saw his production drop considerably last season after putting up a career-high 120 points in 2023-24 but he still managed 37 goals and 52 assists in 80 games to lead New York in scoring once again.  Panarin has a $11.643MM cap charge and given that he’ll be 34 when his next deal starts, he’ll be in tough to match that price tag at that time.

Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference:

  • The Senators are making significant progress on securing the land agreement at LeBreton Flats as the site for their next arena, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. The team has been in discussions for this parcel of land for several years now and signed an agreement in principle to buy the land last September, assuming that an agreement on the price could be reached.  After both sides had separate land valuations done that were well apart in value, there was still a gap to be bridged which apparently, progress is being made on.  The belief is that even if this is finalized, the Sens will remain in their current arena for at least the next five years.
  • Sabres prospect Yevgeni Prokhorov has signed a tryout deal with Dinamo Minsk of the KHL, per a team announcement on its Telegram page. The netminder was a seventh-round pick last month after spending last season in Dinamo’s MHL program where he posted a 2.19 GAA and a .903 SV% in 28 games.  Prokhorov was a first-round pick in last month’s CHL Import Draft, going 23rd overall to OHL Flint, leading to some speculation that he could come to North America but it appears that isn’t on the table at the moment.

Canucks Have Had Discussions With Jack Roslovic

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Earlier this week, it was reported that the Canucks had interest in some remaining free agents but lacked the cap space to sign any.  That changed on Thursday when Vancouver dealt forward Dakota Joshua to Toronto, freeing up an additional $3.25MM in flexibility, enough to take a run at someone still unsigned.

It appears that one of their targets might be forward Jack Roslovic.  Shortly following yesterday’s swap, Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK and The Athletic reported (Twitter link) that there have been talks between the Canucks and Roslovic’s camp.  Last month, Postmedia’s Ben Kuzma noted that Vancouver pursued the 28-year-old last summer so he’s someone they’ve had their eye on previously.  Meanwhile, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported recently that Toronto was another team interested in Roslovic although it’s unclear if the addition of Joshua takes them out of that market now.

Roslovic, of course, didn’t sign with them last summer, instead inking a one-year, $2.8MM with the Hurricanes on the heels of an up-and-down year between the Blue Jackets and Rangers that saw him notch nine goals and 22 assists in 59 games.  The hope was that a good showing in Carolina could bolster his value heading into the open market this time around.

To his credit, Roslovic was able to bounce back offensively, matching his career high in goals with 22 in 81 games while adding 17 assists.  However, his playing time dropped below 14 minutes a night while in the playoffs, he was a healthy scratch six times in Carolina’s run to the Eastern Conference Final which didn’t exactly give his value the boost he was hoping for.

Still, Roslovic has shown he can play both center and the wing, something of note for a Vancouver roster that lost center Pius Suter to St. Louis without finding another middleman to replace him.  With Filip Chytil currently pegged to be their second-line pivot, there is certainly a role that Roslovic could fill in the middle six for the Canucks.

As things stand, Vancouver has $3.27MM in cap space for next season, per PuckPedia.  That’s enough to afford Roslovic on a similar price to last season although that will once again have them very tight to the cap ceiling, hardly an ideal scenario when teams like to leave room for injury insurance.  But with the Canucks certainly looking to get back into the playoff picture, it seems likely that a good chunk of that freed-up cap space will be used; perhaps it will be spent to bring Roslovic into the fold.

Senators Re-Sign Xavier Bourgault

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The Senators have reached an agreement with one of their remaining restricted free agents as PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that they’ve signed forward Xavier Bourgault to a one-year, two-way deal.  The contract will pay Bourgault $775K in the NHL and $90K in the minors.

The 22-year-old was a first-round pick by Edmonton back in 2021, going 22nd overall after showing some offensive promise with QMJHL Shawinigan.  In his final three seasons with the Cataractes, Bourgault potted 89 goals and 97 assists in 135 games, providing some enthusiasm that he could be a cost-controlled contributor for an Oilers roster that certainly could use that.

However, Bourgault wasn’t able to produce anywhere near those numbers with AHL Bakersfield.  After a respectable rookie season in 2022-23 that saw him record 34 points in 62 games, his output dipped the following year to just eight goals and 12 assists in 55 outings.  That was enough for GM Stan Bowman to decide to make a change, dealing Bourgault to Ottawa that summer along with prospect Jake Chiasson for winger Roby Jarventie and a fourth-round pick.

Bourgault spent last season with AHL Belleville and was able to rebound a bit, notching 12 goals and 14 assists in 61 games.  While that wasn’t enough to match or surpass his rookie-season output, it was enough to earn him a qualifying offer last month.  Bourgault didn’t take it, instead foregoing a bit of a higher potential NHL salary in exchange for a slight raise in his AHL pay.

Bourgault will be waiver-eligible for the first time next season.  While a player with his type of numbers generally wouldn’t be a candidate to be claimed, his draft pedigree might be enough for a team or two to at least ponder giving him a look, assuming he doesn’t break camp with Ottawa in training camp which is the likeliest scenario.  Assuming he makes it back to Belleville, he’ll look to position himself to get his first regular season recall.

With Bourgault’s signing, Ottawa now has three remaining restricted free agents to re-sign this summer: forward Jan Jenik and defensemen Donovan Sebrango and Max Guenette.

Louis Domingue Signs With KHL’s Sibir Novosibirsk

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July 17: Domingue has officially signed a one-year deal with Novosibirsk, the club announced.

July 15: While the annual goalie carousel didn’t feature as much movement as usual, many netminders have found contracts in North America for the upcoming season.  One who hasn’t, however, is veteran Louis Domingue.  It appears he’s now exploring his overseas options as Sport-Express’ Artur Khairullin reports (Telegram link) that Domingue could be signing with Sibir Novosibirsk of the KHL.

The 33-year-old has been a bit of a journeyman in North America, spending time with seven different NHL teams and seven AHL organizations over his 12-year professional career.

Last season, Domingue was in the Rangers’ system, his third year with them.  He played in 28 games with AHL Hartford and had somewhat of a down season, putting up a 3.32 GAA with a .896 SV% in those outings.  He also got into one appearance with New York, a 25-save victory in early January.

Domingue has played in 144 NHL games over his career, the bulk of which came with the Coyotes who drafted him in the fifth round back in 2010.  All told, he has a 61-60-10 record at the top level with a 3.01 GAA, a .906 SV%, and two shutouts.  His longevity has earned him a little over $10MM in career earnings, per PuckPedia.

Meanwhile, Domingue has had a busier workload in the minors, spanning 226 outings.  He also has had a bit more success, amassing a 101-89-27 record to go with a 2.81 GAA, a .907 SV%, and 10 shutouts.

At this point, most teams have their AHL tandems intact for the upcoming season and while Domingue could be a candidate to land a PTO as injury insurance heading into training camp, it would also make sense to see if there are other opportunities out there.  It appears he at least has one in the KHL if he ultimately decides that the time is right to give playing overseas a try.

Hurricanes Re-Sign Skyler Brind’Amour, Domenick Fensore

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Jul. 16th: The Hurricanes confirmed Brind’Amour’s new contract via a team announcement. Carolina also announced that they’ve re-signed defenseman Domenick Fensore to a one-year, two-way contract. He’ll earn $775K at the NHL level and $70K at the AHL level, with $100K guaranteed.

Jul. 14th: Carolina has taken care of one of its remaining restricted free agents as PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that the Hurricanes have re-signed forward Skyler Brind’Amour to a one-year, two-way contract.  The deal will pay him $775K in the NHL, $90K in the AHL, and has a guaranteed payout of $100K.

The 25-year-old was originally a sixth-round pick by Edmonton back in 2017, going 177th overall.  However, after playing his college action at Quinnipiac, he didn’t sign with the Oilers, instead joining AHL Charlotte on a one-year deal for 2022-23.  After putting up eight points in 54 games with them, Brind’Amour inked a one-year, two-way pact with the Hurricanes for last season.

Brind’Amour spent most of 2024-25 with AHL Chicago and was a bit more productive than his professional debut, notching 16 goals and eight assists in 68 games.  With Carolina sitting many players for the final two games to keep them healthy for the playoffs, Brind’Amour was among the players recalled from the Wolves and he picked up his first career NHL goal in the final game of the season.

Brind’Amour will require waivers now to return to the minors but it seems unlikely that he will be picked up off the waiver wire.  Assuming he passes through unclaimed, he will once again serve as recallable depth for Carolina in 2025-26 and will once again be a restricted free agent next summer.

With the signing, the Hurricanes are now down to two remaining restricted free agents, both of whom primarily played for the Wolves last season – forward Ryan Suzuki, plus defensemen Ronan Seeley.

Canucks Actively Looking To Open Up Cap Space

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While the majority of unrestricted free agent activity has already happened, there are a handful of players of some significance still looking for new homes.  But at this point, some teams will need to free up cap space if they want to add anyone off the open market.  It appears the Canucks are one of those as Thomas Drance of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that Vancouver is monitoring a couple of players still on the open market and are actively working to open up cap space before they could sign one.

The Canucks have been busy in recent weeks but a lot of their moves have been to either re-sign pending free agents or signing players to early extensions that kick in starting in 2026-27.  In the former category, blueliner Derek Forbort was re-signed last month to a one-year, $2MM pact while winger Brock Boeser inked a seven-year, $50.75MM contract just as free agency opened up.  Meanwhile, winger Conor Garland (six years, $36MM) and goaltender Thatcher Demko (three years, $25.5MM) inked extensions on the first day they were eligible.

Meanwhile, there hasn’t been a lot of roster turnover from last season.  Vancouver picked up winger Evander Kane from Edmonton in a cap-clearing move from the Oilers while losing center Pius Suter to St. Louis and defenseman Noah Juulsen to Philadelphia in free agency.  They also recently moved goaltender Arturs Silovs to Pittsburgh, knowing they were going to lose him on waivers in the fall.

But for the most part, the bulk of the core group remains intact from last season, one that saw them lose 19 points in the standings, going from winning the Pacific Division in 2023-24 to finishing fifth last season, missing the playoffs altogether.

However, if GM Patrik Allvin wants to add to his roster, he will definitely need to open up some extra cap flexibility while their current roster flexibility is somewhat limited as well.  Per PuckPedia, the Canucks have just $795K in cap space which doesn’t leave much wiggle room for in-season injury recalls let alone other moves.

Who could be moved is a matter of some question, however.  Center Teddy Blueger is in the final year of his deal at an affordable $1.8MM cap hit but he outperformed his contract a year ago so he might not be someone they want to move.  Nils Hoglander begins a new three-year, $9MM deal this season and took a step back offensively last year which probably doesn’t help his value.  Meanwhile, Dakota Joshua had a tough year after returning from testicular cancer so the three years and $9.75MM left on his deal could be viewed as problematic.

While there’s a belief that the Canucks underachieved last season, they haven’t done much to change up the core that finished off the year.  But if they want to add any other pieces to their group to help their chances of getting back into the playoffs, they need to create some cap room beforehand, a process that already appears to be underway.

Snapshots: Kostin, Jets, Blue Jackets

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Unrestricted free agent winger Klim Kostin has changed agents, signing with Shumi Babaev, the agent announced (Twitter link).  The 26-year-old had a sparing role last season in San Jose, recording just one goal and six assists in 35 games with 111 hits but is only two years removed from a 10-goal, 21-point season which could get him a look on a one-year deal somewhere in the coming weeks or a PTO deal at worst.  If a guaranteed contract doesn’t materialize, Kostin could be a candidate to return home and play in the KHL; Babaev’s announcement notes that he will be representing the winger when it comes to contract discussions with both leagues.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • The Jets showed interest in winger Andrew Mangiapane in free agency, relays Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Free Press. The 29-year-old wound up signing a two-year, $7.2MM contract with Edmonton with a chance to play in their top six; Wiebe adds that Mangiapane left a bit of money on the table to do so, suggesting that Winnipeg’s offer was for a bit more than $3.6MM per season.  Mangiapane is coming off a quiet year that saw him record just 14 goals and 14 assists in 82 games with Washington, his third straight season of a decline in points after a career-best 35-goal, 55-point campaign with Calgary in 2021-22.
  • The Blue Jackets’ only move goalie-wise this summer was moving out Daniil Tarasov who is now the backup in Florida, leaving incumbents Elvis Merzlikins and Jet Greaves as the presumed tandem. However, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports (subscription link) that Columbus is still looking to add a goalie.  Their desired target is someone with some AHL experience but who can hold his own in the NHL if need be.  Ideally, that would be a younger player but GM Don Waddell acknowledged that teams don’t want to give those ones up in a trade.  A waiver claim might wind up being the outcome and while that would mean carrying three goalies, the Blue Jackets are prepared to do so if need be next season.

Minor Transactions: 7/15/25

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It has been a busy 24 hours transactions-wise around the NHL with several restricted free agents signing before their qualifying offers expire later today.  Meanwhile, there have been some other minor signings involving free agents which we’ll run through here.

  • After spending the last four seasons in Seattle’s system on an NHL deal, defenseman Gustav Olofsson will be staying there on a different contract. The Kraken’s AHL affiliate in Coachella Valley announced that they’ve signed the blueliner to a two-year minor-league deal.  Olofsson is a veteran of 63 NHL games but saw just four games with Seattle.  Last season, the 30-year-old played in 51 games with the Firebirds, picking up three goals and 14 assists.
  • Lehigh Valley, affiliate of the Flyers, announced the signings of wingers Zayde Wisdom and Garrett Wilson to one-year deals. Wisdom was a fourth-round pick by Philadelphia back in 2020 and had 32 points in 68 games with the Phantoms last season but wasn’t tendered a qualifying offer last month.  Wilson, meanwhile, is a veteran of 84 NHL games but last played at the top level in 2019.  He had 14 goals and 14 assists in Lehigh Valley last season in 63 games.
  • After spending last season on a two-way deal with San Jose, unrestricted free agent defenseman Joey Keane is heading back to Russia as he has signed a two-year deal with Spartak Moskva, per a team release. The 26-year-old originally started in Carolina’s system but went to Spartak once his entry-level deal ended, spending two years there before coming back to North America last season.  In 2024-25, Keane had 11 points in 38 games, a stat line identical to his second season with Spartak.
  • Bruins prospect Cole Chandler has committed to Northeastern, reports the Northeastern Hockey Blog (Twitter link). The forward was a fifth-round pick last month after putting up 32 points in 64 games with QMJHL Shawinigan during the regular season while adding a dozen more in 16 playoff outings.  He’ll return to the Cataractes for the upcoming season and then move to the NCAA starting in 2026-27.

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