Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Newsstand

NHL Met With Group Interested In New Orleans Expansion

at CDT | by 17 Comments

The NHL held a recent meeting with a group interested in acquiring an expansion team for the New Orleans market at the league’s offices in New York, deputy commissioner Bill Daly told Kevin Weekes of ESPN on Wednesday.

In terms of expansion interest and likelihood, this is about as preliminary as it can get. League commissioner Gary Bettman has remained as noncommittal as possible about when the league will increase past 32 teams after incorporating Vegas and Seattle in the last decade. The league’s preference for team No. 33 will be a return to the Phoenix area after facilitating the Coyotes’ sale to Utah and, through a complicated process, retaining the club’s intellectual and branding rights. A local group comprised of government and business officials met with Bettman last month, but the area still needs a new arena to house an NHL franchise – which there’s been no tangible progress toward completing since the Coyotes’ departure.

New Orleans joins a long list of cities interested in an NHL club. Houston and Atlanta either already have or are in the process of constructing an NHL-ready arena and have had multiple groups express interest in acquiring a franchise within the last two years. Cincinnati, Hamilton, Kansas City, Omaha, Quebec City, and Saskatoon continue as speculative destinations for a further round of expansion – it’s difficult to imagine some combination of Atlanta, Houston, and Phoenix comprising teams 33 and 34.

The only professional team to carry a New Orleans moniker was the ECHL’s New Orleans Brass, who were briefly affiliated with the Sharks and spent five years in the league from 1997-98 to 2001-02. They were the first tenant of what’s now called the Smoothie King Center, home to the NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans, but were forced to fold when the city demanded them to shoulder the costs of converting the arena to a basketball configuration. The building held a capacity of 16,900 when configured for hockey.

The Baton Rouge Zydeco of the FPHL, two levels of play below the ECHL, is the only professional hockey team currently operational in Louisiana. They’re in just their second season of play.

Canucks Sign Drew O’Connor To Two-Year Extension

at CDT | by 2 Comments

Feb. 19: O’Connor’s extension actually does carry some trade protection – a modified 12-team no-trade clause in both seasons, per PuckPedia.

Feb. 18: The Canucks have agreed to terms on a two-year, $5MM extension with winger Drew O’Connor, per a team announcement. He’ll carry a cap hit of $2.5MM in the 2025-26 and 2026-27 campaigns. His deal carries a $775K salary with a $2.075MM signing bonus in Year 1, followed by a $2.15MM salary with no bonuses in Year 2, PuckPedia reports.

O’Connor, 27 in June, was set for unrestricted free agency this summer after Vancouver acquired him along with defenseman Marcus Pettersson from the Penguins at the beginning of the month. After extending Pettersson on a six-year, $33MM deal a few days later, they’ve ensured both acquisitions will remain with the club past the stretch run.

While an afterthought in the deal compared to Pettersson, O’Connor has two goals on 10 shots in four games since the trade, including a penalty shot winner in overtime against the Sharks on Feb. 6. He has a plus-one rating, and the Canucks have controlled shot attempts 58-53 when he’s on the ice at even strength. He’s spent most of his time in the top six with Brock Boeser and Filip Chytil, helping the trio control 59.3% of expected goals through 28 minutes, per MoneyPuck. It’s a small sample, but he’s been a good fit in Vancouver early on.

O’Connor is no stranger to playing a complementary top-six role. He’s spent most of the last two years in Pittsburgh getting reps on Sidney Crosby’s wing, including his breakout 2023-24 campaign that saw him net 16-17–33 in 79 games. The New Jersey native’s production had dipped this year before the trade, limited to 6-10–16 in 53 games with the Pens, but he’s tracking to rediscover more reliable top-nine production with the Canucks.

Over his 214-game career, the undrafted free agent signing out of Dartmouth has 32-36–68 with a minus-five rating. That averages out to 12 goals and 26 points per 82 games, and while that looks more like fringe third-line production, he’s tracking upward. Considering he’s demonstrated top-six utility, betting on his value to replicate or eclipse a $2.5MM cap hit amid a rising upper limit is a prudent move from Vancouver general manager Patrik Allvin, especially on a short-term deal with no trade protection.

O’Connor will now have to wait until 2027 to test unrestricted free agency for the first time. Meanwhile, the Canucks now have $75.87MM committed to 15 players for the 2025-26 campaign, per PuckPedia. With the salary cap increasing from $88MM to $92.5MM, they have $19.63MM in projected space to fill eight roster spots, a good chunk of which is earmarked for extension negotiations with pending UFAs. Brock Boeser and Kevin Lankinen.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Bruins’ Charlie McAvoy Out Week-To-Week

at CDT | by 9 Comments

Feb. 19: McAvoy is out week-to-week for Boston after undergoing a procedure to remove an infection stemming from his upper-body injury, sources told Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff on Tuesday evening. He’s likely bound for injured reserve to make room for the multiple recalls the Bruins made yesterday. Boston head team physician Dr. Peter Asnis confirmed Seravalli’s report, issuing the following statement on McAvoy’s health:

Charlie McAvoy sustained an injury to his right shoulder acromioclavicular joint in Team USA’s 4 Nations Face-Off game against Finland on February 13. He underwent treatment, which was administered by Team USA’s medical staff. Upon returning to Boston, he developed increasing pain, for which he was evaluated by the Boston Bruins’ medical staff. After undergoing X-rays, MRIs, and bloodwork, he was diagnosed as having an infection in his right shoulder, as well as a significant injury to his AC joint. He underwent an irrigation and debridement procedure at Massachusetts General Hospital on February 18. He remains in the hospital, where he is being treated with IV antibiotics, and his condition is improving.

Feb. 18: According to a statement from the Bruins, McAvoy has been ruled out of the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game on Thursday. Boston shared he’s undergoing testing at Massachusetts General Hospital for an upper-body injury and the team will pass along additional information as it becomes available.

Feb. 17: It’s already been confirmed through multiple reports this morning that Team USA would be resting defenseman Charlie McAvoy for tonight’s matchup against Team Sweden. Unfortunately, there appears to be another layer of context for McAvoy’s absence as Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub reports McAvoy is out with an upper-body injury and is questionable to play in Thursday’s championship game.

McAvoy would be a major missing piece for the Americans should he not be available for Thursday’s re-match against Team Canada. Although he went scoreless in the first North American rivalry contest, the Boston Bruins’ blue-liner landed five hits in 19:27 of ice time, including a momentum-altering body check against Connor McDavid.

Team USA has a more than capable in-house replacement in Ottawa Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson but they’ll have a slight abundance of left-handed shots on the blue line. Sanderson, nor any other member of the United States defensive core, is as physical as McAvoy, but he can hold his own on the offensive side of the puck.

Aside from his immediate availability for the United States to close out the 4 Nations Face-Off, there’s no telling if McAvoy’s injury will affect his availability with the Bruins. Anderson didn’t offer a timeline for McAvoy’s recovery but it could be somewhat serious if he’ll miss an entire week of hockey.

Boston will emerge from the 4 Nations Face-Off break exactly one point back of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, with two additional games played compared to the Detroit Red Wings. Time is abundant for the Bruins to recapture a playoff spot but their probability will shrink without their top defenseman. Again, there’s no confirmation McAvoy will miss any time with the Bruins although it’ll be a situation to monitor.

Canucks’ Thatcher Demko Out Week-To-Week

at CDT | by 3 Comments

Vancouver Canucks starting goaltender Thatcher Demko won’t join the team for their upcoming five-game road trip, per Thomas Drance of The Athletic. Demko suffered a lower-body injury just 10 minutes into Vancouver’s 2-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on February 8th – the team’s last game before the 4-Nations Face-Off break. Drance added that Demko has been designated as out week-to-week and that Demko’s injury isn’t connected to the knee injury that held him out of multiple weeks at the end of last season.

The Canucks turned to backup Kevin Lankinen to replace Demko after his injury. Lankinen posted 21 saves on 22 shots to lead Vancouver to a win, bringing his season-long record up to 19-8-7 in 34 appearances. Lankinen has also leads all Canucks goaltenders with a .905 save percentage and 2.53 goals-against-average. He’ll be the assumed starter when the Canucks return from break, but their upcoming road-trip features two sets of back-to-back games. That tight schedule will likely open the door for Arturs Silovs to make his own spot start.

Silovs hasn’t played since late-November, after appearing in seven of Vancouver’s first 22 games. The 23-year-old Latvian posted a 1-4-1 record, .847 Sv%, and 4.11 GAA in those appearances, prompting a quick return to the minor leagues. He found more stable footing in Abbotsford, posting a 10-4-0 record and .906 Sv%. Silovs upheld those numbers through multiple trips to serve as Lankinen’s backup when Demko missed time in January. He could now be rewarded for waiting with game time – but isn’t likely to claw above the pair of veterans ahead of him on the depth chart in what should be a minimal role.

Lankinen should be a stout fill-in on the heels of his strong season, but Vancouver will still surely miss Demko. The oft-injured starter was finally finding his groove before the Canucks went on break, marked by a 3-1-0 record and .952 Sv% in his last four healthy games. That streak was a welcome turnaround for Demko after he started his season with a dismal 3-5-3 record and .867 Sv% in 12 games. He seemed to need an extended runway as he worked his way back from a long-term ailment – and now lands in a similar and untimely situation. The Canucks will return from their extended road trip on March 5th, then quickly face four games across a six-day stretch.

Dallas Stars Sign Sam Steel To Two-Year Extension

at CDT | by 3 Comments

The Dallas Stars have started early in retaining one of their multiple forwards heading to unrestricted free agency next summer. Dallas announced they’ve signed forward Sam Steel to a two-year, $4.2MM extension which will take him through the 2026-27 NHL season.

Steel signed a one-year, $850K contract with the Stars on the first day of free agency in 2023 after going non-tendered by the Minnesota Wild. The former first-round pick responded well, scoring nine goals and 24 points in 77 games averaging 13:15 of ice time per game.

Although his offensive production doesn’t jump off the page, Steel’s work on the defensive side of the puck drew some attention. He had a +10 differential between takeaways and giveaways putting him in the same tier as Radek Faksa, Jamie Benn, and Jason Robertson.

His 52.0% CorsiFor% only ranked 15th on the team but it’s more impressive considering he started 58.7% of his shifts in the defensive zone. For better or worse, some of that has changed this season.

Steel is similarly producing solid possession metrics but his takeaway/giveaway differential has plummeted to -22. Still, in his defense, that is true of every player on the Stars this season.

He’s averaging slightly more offensive production being on pace for six goals and 20 points which has correlated to a mild 1:30 boost in average ice time. Given his consistency in Dallas’ lineup and relative youth compared to other forwards on the roster, the extension should benefit Steel and the Stars.

Canada’s Shea Theodore To Miss Remainder Of 4 Nations Face-Off

at CDT | by 28 Comments

10:45 a.m.: Theodore is expected to be out week-to-week due to the upper-body injury, the Golden Knights said Thursday. Whether he’ll remain out through the trade deadline remains to be seen, but it’s clear he won’t be ready to go when Vegas resumes its schedule on Feb. 22 against the Canucks.

8:17 a.m.: Canada defenseman Shea Theodore will be sidelined for the rest of the 4 Nations Face-Off after sustaining an upper-body injury in last night’s overtime win over Sweden, head coach Jon Cooper told reporters postgame (including Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet).

The Golden Knights blue-liner hit the boards awkwardly while being hit by Swedish Kings winger Adrian Kempe early in the second period. He skated off under his own power and appeared to favor his right arm/shoulder area. During the game, TNT’s Jackie Redmond relayed that Theodore was already undergoing X-rays as part of his initial evaluation.

Unfortunately for the 29-year-old, his second appearance for the Canadian men’s national team ends after nine shifts and 6:59 of ice time. Canada cannot immediately replace Theodore on its roster – they can only add replacements if fewer than 18 healthy skaters are available for a game. Travis Sanheim was scratched as their extra defenseman against Sweden but will make his tournament debut on Saturday against the United States.

It’s a tough break for the 6’2″ lefty, who’s produced at an elite clip for Vegas since the turn of the decade but has struggled with injuries over the past few seasons. He hasn’t played more than 60 regular-season games in a single campaign since 2021-22. He was on track to play in all but one regular season game this year after missing a game due to illness back in October, but his availability for Vegas coming out of the two-week break in the schedule is now uncertain.

Theodore wasn’t going to be a top power-play option for Canada – they had Cale Makar and Josh Morrissey to quarterback their two units. But he was arguably their best puck-mover and most offensively gifted blue-liner behind those two, and a much lower-ceiling option in Sanheim now has to fill his minutes.

Vegas is far more concerned about Theodore missing time than the national side, though. He’s inarguably been their top defenseman this season, leading the club’s blue-liners in goals (seven), assists (41), points (48), shot attempts (282), takeaways (27), expected rating (+9.5), and CF% at even strength (52.1). For a team that entered the break on a 5-8-3 skid, that’s tough news.

Theodore’s lone previous appearance for the Canadian men’s national team came in 2019 when he recorded 2-5–7 with a plus-nine rating in 10 games en route to a silver medal at the World Championship. He also suited up for Canada at the 2013 U18 Worlds and the 2015 World Juniors.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

NHL Announces 2028 World Cup Of Hockey

at CDT | by 35 Comments

With the start of the 4 Nations Face-Off just hours away, it seems the NHL is already establishing plans to deepen its international footprint. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA Executive Director Marty Walsh have plans to announce the 2028 World Cup of Hockey tournament that’d split games between North America and Europe, per Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. The World Cup will be a mid-season tournament scheduled over the usual All-Star Break, like the 4 Nations Face-Off. LeBrun adds that this news sets up international, best-on-best hockey every two years until 2036 – with hope for a timeline that includes the Winter Olympics in 2026, 2030, and 2034 and the World Cup in 2028, 2032, and 2036.

Perhaps more exciting is the return to the name ’World Cup,’ suggesting that more countries will be involved than the four represented at the 4 Nations tournament. This would inevitably require the involvement of professional leagues around the world, as neither Czechia nor Slovakia have enough NHL players to staff an NHL-exclusive roster.

The naming of a worldwide tournament will also lead to the eventual question of Russia’s involvement. The country has been expelled from international play since the 2021 World Championship, where they fell to Team Canada in the quarterfinals. The IIHF recently reviewed Russia and Belarus’ eligibility for international competition but chose to maintain the expulsion through the 2025-26 season due to the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Hall-of-Famer Pavel Bure was chosen to represent Russia in recent conversations with the IIHF and, citing concerns over player safety, shared that Russia would be willing to finance additional security if it meant allowing “fans across the planet to watch one of the world’s best teams in action again.”

The IIHF’s decision will only apply to events they sanction – that decision only applies to IIHF-sanctioned events, and both the NHL and International Olympic Committee will still need to make their own decisions on whether Russia should play in their events. The NHL moving towards potentially biannual meetings between national clubs sets up an inevitable, and potentially precarious decision on Russia’s eligibility.

Friedman: Islanders Not Making Noah Dobson Widely Available

at CDT | by 6 Comments

Contrary to a report late last week, the Islanders are not actively making defenseman Noah Dobson available for trade, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet said on Monday’s 32 Thoughts podcast.

I don’t think he’s generally been out there. There’s too many teams that hadn’t heard it, so I’ll say this. If Dobson was discussed, he was discussed in a specific case or two or however many it was. There was one specific team or one specific player that the Islanders were looking at, and if they had gone down the road on that trade, then Dobson might have been included. I think that’s the fairest way to look at all of this.

Most would suppose the Canucks were the club Friedman’s referring to – including Friedman, who said Vancouver would be “very logical” but couldn’t report with certainty. He assumedly would have been part of the return for Elias Pettersson should a trade have crossed the finish line. Stefen Rosner of NHL.com and The Hockey News reported multiple times over the past few months, including as recently as last week, that the Isles have maintained interest in Pettersson since his name re-emerged in trade rumors earlier this season.

While it’s feasible the Islanders could offer up Dobson again as part of a return for a similarly valued asset, Friedman makes it clear they won’t be selling the 25-year-old as the centerpiece of a deal for futures. The 6’4″ righty is one year removed from a 60-assist, 70-point campaign that earned him an eighth-place finish in Norris Trophy voting. He hasn’t been as dominant offensively this season, mainly due to the club’s power play woes, but his 0.52 points per game still lead the Isles’ blue line, and his 143 shots on goal rank fourth on the team.

Of course, his season came to a halt nearly three weeks ago when he fell awkwardly on his right leg while attempting a check, landing him on long-term injured reserve. He’s listed as week-to-week and didn’t require surgery, and Newsday’s Andrew Gross reported at the beginning of the month that he’s expected to return to the ice during the 4 Nations break. There’s a chance he gets back into game action before the trade deadline as the Islanders, also hamstrung by injuries to Mathew Barzal and Ryan Pulock, among others, enter the break only four points back of a playoff spot.

The Islanders picked up a trio of puck-movers to help them out in Dobson’s and Pulock’s absences, but none of Adam Boqvist, Tony DeAngelo or Scott Perunovich are signed past this season. Neither is Dobson, a pending restricted free agent set to at least double his current $4MM AAV. The Isles have nearly $29MM in cap space for 2025-26 but also need new deals for notable RFAs Alexander Romanov and Maxim Tsyplakov as they continue extension talks with Brock Nelson.

Yet Dobson is the youngest and most established top-four player out of any of those names. He’s sticking around for the long haul unless, as mentioned, he’s leveraged for an elite forward who can jumpstart an Islanders’ offense that’s ranked in the bottom ten every season since 2017-18.

Quinn Hughes Won’t Play In 4 Nations Face-Off, Jake Sanderson Named To Team USA

at CDT | by 10 Comments

A third and arguably best defenseman has bowed out of the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off. The Vancouver Canucks announced defenseman Quinn Hughes would miss the international tournament due to injury. Shortly after, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman confirmed that Jake Sanderson of the Ottawa Senators would replace Hughes on Team USA’s roster.

Hughes’ departure from Team USA’s roster follows on the heels of Dallas Stars’ defenseman Miro Heiskanen and Vegas Golden Knights’ defenseman Alex Pietrangelo. Both blue-liners are dealing with injuries (the former recovering from knee surgery) and have already been replaced on Team Finland and Team Canada.

With all due respect to Heiskanen and Pietrangelo, the Canucks captain is the highest-profile name to be removed from the competition. He’s missed the last four games for Vancouver due to a hand injury and the team is prioritizing their playoff hopes over Hughes’ participation in the tournament.

Although Heiskanen may ultimately be more valuable to his team, that’s only a testament to Team USA’s defensive depth. Hughes, who won the James Norris Memorial Trophy as the league’s best defenseman only one year ago, has scored 31 goals and 151 points in his last 129 regular-season games. The native of Orlando, Florida, last represented Team USA at the 2019 IIHF World Championships. If he does not play for the United States’ World Championship team this upcoming summer, he’ll have to wait until the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan to compete again.

Replacing Hughes on the roster is Ottawa’s Sanderson, who last played for Team USA in the 2024 IIHF World Championships. The Whitefish, MT native is only two and a half years removed from debuting in the NHL scoring 19 goals and 105 points in 211 career games. Given the rest of the talent on Team USA’s blue line, Sanderson should represent the team’s seventh defenseman although he’ll likely play in a handful of games.

Penguins, Jesse Puljujärvi Mutually Terminate Contract

at CDT | by 17 Comments

Feb. 9: Puljujärvi went unclaimed and will have his deal terminated, Friedman reports.

Feb. 8: According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Pittsburgh Penguins have placed forward Jesse Puljujärvi on unconditional waivers to terminate his contract. Puljujärvi would become an unrestricted free agent should he go unclaimed over the next 24 hours.

It is an anticipated conclusion to a relationship that has seemingly deteriorated over the past two months. The Penguins placed Puljujärvi on regular waivers on December 30 and officially reassigned him on January 14th, a few weeks later.

The former fourth-overall selection in the 2016 NHL Draft has been reassigned for a second time recently. Over the past month, he has primarily played with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in the AHL. His performance has been respectable, recording one goal and three points in four AHL games. However, the Penguins have decided to move forward without him in their organization.

Unfortunately, Puljujärvi’s potential as a prospect has drastically diminished. Since returning to the NHL for the 2020-21 season, he has scored 40 goals and 90 points in 243 games for the Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes, and Pittsburgh Penguins.

His production will ultimately limit his traction as an unrestricted free agent. Some teams may offer the Älvkarleby, Sweden native a bottom-six role down the stretch but Puljujärvi may be limited to more of a taxi role if he chooses to stay in North America.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

scroll to top