Latest On Artemi Panarin, Rangers Retool
Mirroring a similar action they took almost eight years ago, the New York Rangers released a public statement — a letter — to fans and the media announcing the club would chart a new direction for its competitive future, embracing a “retool” of its roster as the best path back to legitimate Stanley Cup contention.
While no transactions have yet been made to kick off this “retool,” (outside of a brief recall of defenseman Connor Mackey) it’s likely that we’ll see several made as we get closer to the NHL’s trade deadline on March 6.
In the aftermath of the Rangers’ letter, two players have emerged as the most likely candidates to be traded by the team before the deadline: pending UFAs Artemi Panarin and Carson Soucy.
Soucy’s situation is more straightforward. He’s an established defensive defenseman with over 400 games of NHL experience. The Rangers should have no issue fielding offers for Soucy, even if they have to navigate a $3.25MM AAV contract that contains a 12-team no-trade list. The Athletic’s Peter Baugh wrote Friday that the Rangers “should be able to fetch at least a mid-round pick” in any Soucy deal.
Panarin’s situation is significantly more complicated. First and foremost, he has a full no-move clause, meaning he’ll need to sign off on any deal before he can be traded. 
Panarin was asked about the Rangers’ new direction after the team’s victory over the Philadelphia Flyers yesterday, and he said “I’m still confused, but the GM decided to go in a different direction. I’m OK with that.” Panarin was asked more specifically about his no-move clause, but he declined to address that specific element of the situation.
The Rangers have made it clear to Panarin, per multiple reports, that he will not be offered a contract extension with the club. So, as long as he is willing to waive his no-move clause to go somewhere, he’s a near-certainty to be moved at some point before the deadline.
Parsing together where he might actually be dealt is the more difficult part of the equation, largely because it’s so dependent on Panarin’s preferences. For example, he’d be within his rights to only accept a trade to a single destination, if he finds he has his heart set on playing for one specific team. There is some precedent for such a scenario, such as when Taylor Hall used his contractual rights in 2021 to steer the Buffalo Sabres into trading him to the Boston Bruins.
There’s been no indication, at this point, that Panarin is going to take up that approach, and it could be equally likely that he provides the Rangers with a curated list of teams he’d accept being dealt to. There’s even a possibility — however remote — that Panarin declines to waive his no-move clause at all.
What the Rangers might receive in return appears, in many ways, dependent on Panarin’s decisions in this process. If he allows for a wide range of potential destinations, the Rangers could create sufficient leverage in trade talks to generate a significant return. If Panarin only accepts a deal to one team, New York would naturally have far less leverage in trade talks, and the return could subsequently be lighter than anticipated.
Looking back to the Hall example, the Sabres’ return for their star winger, a recent Hart Trophy winner, was widely considered “underwhelming” at the time. In exchange for Hall, the Sabres were only able to net a second-round pick and Anders Bjork, in large part due to being forced into exclusive negotiations with the Bruins.
While there’s been no indication that Panarin has a specific destination in mind the way Hall did, the precedent is worth looking back at, as it illustrates just how much control Panarin has over the process.
New York recently communicated to Panarin, their star forward of the 2020’s, that he would not be offered a contract extension. As a result, he may have a limited appetite to assist the Rangers and provide them with a wide range of teams he’d accept a trade to.
Beyond Panarin, the Rangers do have a few other trade candidates to consider, though the key ones are not pending UFAs like Panarin and Soucy.
The Athletic’s Vince Z. Mercogliano wrote yesterday that center Vincent Trocheck is “widely considered” the Rangers’ most valuable trade asset, and the 32-year-old could be the top pivot available in an extremely limited in-season trade market at the position. He could be of immense interest to center-needy contending teams such as the Minnesota Wild.
In addition to Trocheck, Mercogliano also named defenseman Braden Schneider, who is a pending RFA, as a key trade candidate. Since New York has right-shot blueliners Adam Fox and Will Borgen each signed to long-term deals, they could deal from a position of strength with Schneider. Trading the 2020 first-rounder would give the Rangers’ retool a significant boost, as he’s likely to command a strong return as a coveted young, sizeable right-shot defenseman.
But while the Rangers could conceivably wait until the offseason to deal Trocheck or Schneider, they don’t have the privilege of that kind of timeline with Panarin or Soucy. As a result, the Rangers’ retool could begin in earnest sooner rather than later.
Photos courtesy of Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
St. Louis Blues To Activate Dylan Holloway
1/18/26: The Blues made it official today, announcing that Holloway will return to the lineup for the team’s game against the Edmonton Oilers.
St. Louis has an open spot on their 23-man active roster, meaning they won’t need to make a corresponding transaction in order to activate Holloway off injured reserve. Once Holloway is activated, the Blues will be down to three forwards on IR: Suter, top pivot Robert Thomas, and winger Mathieu Joseph.
1/17/26: Things are finally swinging towards the positive for the injury-plagued St. Louis Blues. Winger Dylan Holloway was a full participant at practice and will join the team on their upcoming three-game road trip per Lou Korac of The Hockey News. The top-six winger has missed the last 15 games with a high ankle sprain in his right leg.
Centerman Pius Suter won’t be ready for the road trip and will miss the trip. Suter has missed the last nine games with a high ankle sprain of his own. If Suter follows Holloway’s timeline, he could be a candidate to return during St. Louis’ four-game homestand next week.
Returning Holloway will be a major addition for the struggling Blues offense. St. Louis has averaged just 2.33 goals-per-game since Holloway was injured, the second-lowest mark in the NHL behind the New Jersey Devils. The Blues have slipped while continuing to allow a league-average 3.0 goals-against, putting them in a losing stance on a nightly basis.
The explosive Holloway could be the man to end the quiet spell. Even after an extended absence, he still ranks seventh on the team in scoring with eight goals and 17 points in 33 games. That includes four points scored in seven games through the first two weeks of December, the fourth-most of any Blue.
Holloway has been a revelation for the Blues lineup since joining the team in the summer of 2024. He had a career-year last season, scoring 26 goals and 63 points in 77 games in what was his first full season on an NHL roster. Like many Blues, Holloway’s numbers have dipped in the 2025-26 season – but his spot on the team’s top-six has held firm. Holloway is expected to return to the lineup as the spark plug next to Dalibor Dvorsky and Jake Neighbours.
Suter has held down a third-line role in his first season in St. Louis. He scored 14 points, split evenly, in 37 games before going down with injury. The 29-year-old center hasn’t found the same spark that led him to 25 goals and 46 points with the Vancouver Canucks last season. He has provided depth support among a veteran bottom-six and should continue in that role when he’s back from injury.
Lightning Reassign Brandon Halverson
1/18/26: The Lightning announced today that Halverson has been returned to AHL Syracuse. Halverson backed up Vasilevskiy for the club’s loss to the St. Louis Blues on Friday, in place of Johansson.
Halverson’s reassignment indicates Johansson will be active for the Lightning’s game against the Dallas Stars this afternoon.
1/16/26: According to a team announcement, the Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled goaltender Brandon Halverson ahead of tonight’s game against the St. Louis Blues. The Lightning already had a full 23-man roster before the move, so they’ll have to make a corresponding transaction.
Fortunately for the Bolts, Halverson’s recall isn’t connected to an injury to starting netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy. Backup goalie Jonas Johansson missed Tampa Bay’s practice on Thursday for what the team described as “body maintenance”, so he could be headed for a brief trip to the injured reserve.
Today’s transaction marks the second recall of the year for Halverson. He was first recalled in early December when Vasilevskiy was injured. He only appeared in one game for the Lightning during his 12-day recall, briefly appearing in Tampa Bay’s shootout loss to the New York Islanders on December 13th.
Still, the 29-year-old’s play in the AHL has made him an easy recall candidate when the Lightning have needed him. Halverson has recorded a 12-6-3 record in 20 games for the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch this season with a .899 SV% and 2.42 GAA. His three shutouts are tied for the second-most in the league.
Until the Lightning provides an update on Johansson or their corresponding roster move, there’s no telling how long Halverson’s current recall will last. Regardless, given that Vasilevskiy remains healthy, there’s little chance Halverson will appear in a game unless something goes dramatically wrong.
Bruins Lead Pursuit Of Flames’ Rasmus Andersson
Calgary Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson is one of the top players available for trade at this stage in the 2025-26 season, and as a result, his name has featured heavily in recent reporting as he figures to be dealt at some point in the near future. Numerous developments have been reported regarding Andersson, and on yesterday’s Saturday Headlines segment on Sportsnet’s Hockey Night in Canada broadcast, Elliotte Friedman issued a few notable updates on Andersson’s status.
According to Friedman, “the team that appears to be in the driver’s seat” is the Boston Bruins. Friedman characterized Boston’s interest in Andersson as “very serious,” and added that not only has Boston made Calgary an offer that is believed to be more to Calgary’s liking than the offers of other suitors (such as the Vegas Golden Knights), but they are also the only team, per Friedman, that has permission from the Flames to conduct extension talks with Andersson’s representatives.
Those extension talks between Boston and Andersson’s camp, which is led by Claude Lemieux of 4Sports Hockey, were characterized as “pretty significant” by Friedman. The talks are significant for all parties involved, as the Bruins’ interest in trading for Andersson is reportedly entirely contingent on being able to secure his agreement on a long-term extension.
Because the Bruins are only interested in trading for Andersson if they can sign him to a contract extension, it tracks that their offer to the Flames appears to be more substantive, at this stage, than the offers made by other suitors.
Generally speaking, teams are more willing to part with quality trade assets if they’re receiving a core player in return, rather than a rental.
While the Vegas Golden Knights appear confident that they’d be able to sign Andersson, the fact that the Bruins would only make this trade with an extension in place has a key implication: it means that their trade offer to the Flames takes into consideration, from the outset, the fact that they’d be acquiring a core piece rather than a rental player.
Right now, per Friedman, Vegas’ offer “is not seen” to be as strong as Boston’s. While he cited both the Dallas Stars and Toronto Maple Leafs as other teams in the mix, the Bruins are seen as the clear front-runner to acquire the Flames blueliner.
As for what Andersson might cost Boston, there’s no firm indication as to what the Bruins have included in their offer to Calgary. If the Flames are looking for, at minimum, a first-round pick and a quality prospect, perhaps one that is close to NHL ready, the Bruins have some options to play with.
Boston could dangle a top-five-protected Toronto Maple Leafs’ 2026 first round pick, the one they acquired in last year’s Brandon Carlo deal, as a core part of their offer. The Maple Leafs are currently on the outside of the playoff picture, meaning the pick could be one that participates in the draft lottery.
While it’s almost guaranteed Boston would be trading at least one of its first-rounders in any Andersson deal, it’s less immediately clear what sort of prospect (or prospects) they might have included in their offer to the Flames. Their prospect pool is in better shape than it’s been in recent years, rising to a No. 17 ranking among systems across the league, per Elite Prospects.
One has to assume 2025 No. 7 pick James Hagens is off the table as Boston’s No. 1 prospect and a key piece of the team’s future. 2024 first-rounder Dean Letourneau has had a stellar sophomore season at Boston College, but the Bruins may be loath to surrender the 6’7″ pivot alongside a high-end draft choice.
2021 first-rounder Fabian Lysell has been unable to break into the NHL with the Bruins, and an Andersson trade could serve as his opportunity to receive a change of scenery. But Lysell may not hold enough value at this stage to be the centerpiece prospect of an Andersson offer, though he is far closer to the NHL than No. 2-ranked prospect Letourneau or No. 4 prospect William Moore.
Other possibilities from Boston’s system include World Juniors standout Will Zellers, first-year pro center Dans Locmelis, and Youngstown Phantoms star Cooper Simpson.
While one of these names appears likely to have been included in Boston’s offer for Andersson, there’s no guarantee any of them will end up ultimately being dealt by the Bruins. Other teams are still in the mix to secure Andersson’s services. Although Boston is reportedly the only one at this stage that has had substantive extension talks with the player, it’s not a foregone conclusion that he’ll end up a Bruin.
Photos courtesy of Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
Evening Notes: Abols, Igram, Love
The Philadelphia Flyers could soon receive bad news about a scary-looking injury. Center Rodrigo Abols needed helped off the ice after his right-foot went into the boards awkwardly during Saturday’s game against the New York Rangers. Head coach Rick Tocchet provided little update after the game, except to say that the injury was “not good” per Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Abols was on Latvia’s official roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics, set to begin in roughly one month. He has represented Latvia at Olympic events in 2017, 2022, and 2025, with 13 points in 13 games in total. A long-term injury would leave Latvia, and the Flyers, without an important bit of depth.
The Flyers have deployed Abols in a fourth-line role in his second season with the club. He has recorded 10 points, 22 penalty minutes, and a minus-one in 41 games. Each of those marks are up from the five points, four penalty minutes, and minus-10 that Abols recorded in the first 22 games of his NHL career last season. He should have a spot carved out at the bottom of Philadelphia’s lineup on the other side of this injury, so long as he returns before hitting unrestricted free agency this summer.
Other notes from around the hockey world:
- The Edmonton Oilers have found a small bit of reliability in net. Goaltender Connor Ingram is expected to stick with the team even after he regains waiver eligibility per Sportsnet’s Mark Spector. The team is expected to carry three goaltenders – Ingram, Tristan Jarry, and Calvin Pickard – through the Olympic break. Ingram has recorded four wins and a .907 save percentage in his first eight games with Edmonton. The performance is a major improvement over the four wins and .856 save percentage he recorded in 11 AHL games to start the year – while this resurgence is wholely a nice rebound for Ingram after losing the Utah Hockey Club’s starting role last season. He seems to have found a new role in Edmonton, where he could earn a heap of starts with strong play. Ingram is currently the only Oilers goaltender with a save percentage above .900.
- The KHL’s Shanghai Dragons have hired Mitch Love as their next head coach after Gerard Gallant stepped down last week per Sergey Demidov of RG. Coach Mike Kelly – a former Florida Panthers coach who served as interim head coach in Gallant’s absence – will stay with the team as an assistant coach. Love was hired as an assistant coach by the Washington Capitals this summer but was placed on team-imposed leave before coaching in his first game. The leave was spurred by an NHL investigation into Love, ultimately revealed to be looking into allegations of domestic abuse against Love. The Capitals fired Love after that investigation. Love will now try to lift up a Dragons club that ranks third-to-last in the KHL’s Western Conference. Shanghai is led by former North American pros Spencer Foo, Austin Wagner, Alexander Burmistrov, and Kevin Labanc.
Devils Recall Lenni Hameenaho, Assign Colton White To AHL
The Devils have made a pair of roster moves heading into tonight’s game against Carolina. The team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled winger Lenni Hameenaho from AHL Utica. To make room on the roster, defenseman Colton White was assigned to AHL Utica.
Hameenaho was a second-round pick by New Jersey back in 2023, going 58th overall. He spent the last three seasons with Assat in Finland and had a breakout offensive showing last season, picking up 20 goals and 31 assists in 58 games, good for 15th in league scoring.
That showing was good enough for him to earn his entry-level deal with the Devils back in May. This is Hameenaho’s first NHL recall after spending the first three-plus months of the season in the minors with the Comets. Through 33 games, he has nine goals and 12 assists, good enough to lead the team in scoring. With Ondrej Palat uncertain for tonight due to illness, there could be a chance for Hameenaho to suit up and make his NHL debut.
As for White, he passed through waivers unclaimed earlier today. The 28-year-old has been up with New Jersey for the bulk of the season, getting into 23 games where he has four assists in 12:15 per night of playing time. This was his first NHL action since the 2022-23 campaign when he was with Anaheim. With the Devils back to full health on the back end, keeping him as an eighth defender made little sense to he’ll return to Utica where he’ll have a much more prominent role in their lineup.
Bruins Activate Hampus Lindholm, Reassign Billy Sweezey
The Boston Bruins will have a major piece of the defense back for their Saturday matchup against the Chicago Blackhawks. Hampus Lindholm has been activated from injured reserve after missing the last six games with an undisclosed injury sustained in January 3rd’s overtime win over the Vancouver Canucks. To make room for Lindholm’s addition, Boston has reassigned defenseman Billy Sweezey.
Boston kept up their strong season in Lindholm’s absence. The Bruins posted a 5-1-0 record and 4.33-to-2.00 average goal differential over their last six games. The Bruins leaned on their top-four defenders with Lindholm out – but the second pair of Jonathan Aspirot and Henri Jokiharju stood up to the test, while Mason Lohrei offered a nice bit of depth offense.
Lindholm will offer a timely boost to Boston’s firing defense, while Andrew Peeke – the Bruins’ quietest defender as of late – will be a natural scratch from the lineup. Lindholm has recorded 14 points, 36 penalty minutes, and a minus-seven in 34 games this season. He has again served as a pillar of the blue-line, averaging over 22 minutes of ice time each game. He’ll bring a responsible, veteran presence back to the Bruins’ fold as the team looks to extend a five-game win streak.
Meanwhile, Sweezey will return to the Providence Bruins without making his Boston Bruins debut. The 29-year-old defenseman was recalled as an extra defenseman after Thursday’s game against the Seattle Kraken. Sweezey has recorded 11 points, 33 penalty minutes, and a team-leading plus-22 in 34 games with Providence this season. He is in his second season in Providence after spending three seasons with the Cleveland Monsters. That stint saw Sweezey play his first nine games in the NHL with the 2022-23 Columbus Blue Jackets. He recorded one assist, nine penalty minutes, and a minus-three in those games.
Rangers Reassign Connor Mackey
1/17: The Rangers reassigned Mackey to the minor leagues after he served as a healthy scratch in Saturday’s win over the Philadelphia Flyers.
1/16: According to a team announcement, the New York Rangers have recalled defenseman Connor Mackey from the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack. The reasoning behind Mackey’s recall is that defenseman Carson Soucy will miss tomorrow’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers due to personal reasons.
Today’s transaction makes the fourth recall of the year for Mackey. The 29-year-old defenseman is in his third year with the organization and in the final year of a two-year, $1.55MM contract.
Despite being recalled on multiple occasions, Mackey has yet to play for the Rangers this season. Up to this point, since the beginning of the 2023-24 campaign, Mackey has gone scoreless in three games with New York, averaging 16:14 of ice time per game. The Rangers have six other healthy defensemen on the roster, so Mackey isn’t expected to add to those totals.
He has spent most of his time with the organization playing with AHL Hartford. Providing quality hard-nosed two-way play, Mackey has scored 10 goals and 42 points in 142 games with the Wolf Pack, accruing 238 PIMs in the process.
Meanwhile, Soucy will miss his fifth game this season. The 31-year-old blue liner has appeared in 44 games with New York this season, scoring three goals and eight points while averaging 17:18 of ice time. He has provided quality play on the defensive side of the puck, averaging a 93.5% on-ice SV% at even strength.
There is an indication that Soucy is in his final few weeks with the Rangers. Earlier today, General Manager Chris Drury penned a letter to fans, indicating that the team would punt on the 2025-26 campaign to retool for the future success of the franchise. Being a pending unrestricted free agent, Soucy would be an ideal trade candidate leading up to the deadline, should New York find any suitors for his services.
Golden Knights Recall Dylan Coghlan
Dylan Coghlan is no stranger to finding himself in transactions this season as he has been frequently shuffled between Vegas and AHL Henderson. That move is once again being made as the Golden Knights announced (Twitter link) that the defenseman has been brought up from the Silver Knights.
This is now the fourth time in the last six weeks that Vegas has recalled the 27-year-old. However, it hasn’t yielded much playing time for Coghlan as he has only suited up once for the Golden Knights this season, bringing his career NHL appearances to 113. It’s his second stint with the franchise after signing with them as an undrafted free agent in 2017 and returned to Vegas as an unrestricted free agent last July.
Coghlan has played in 29 games this season with Henderson. While his offensive numbers are down a bit from 2024-25 when he had 28 points in 36 games with Manitoba, he has still contributed five goals and 11 helpers for the Silver Knights.
Coghlan cleared waivers back in early October during training camp, making him exempt until he reaches 10 NHL games or 30 NHL days. Despite the frequent recalls, he has only been up for 13 days to this point so he won’t have to go through the waiver process for a little while yet. He’ll likely once again serve as the seventh defender for however long this particular stint lasts.
Canadiens Activate Jake Evans Off LTIR
After opening a pair of roster spots on Friday following the demotions of goalie Jacob Fowler and center Owen Beck to AHL Laval, it seemed likely that the Canadiens would be getting someone back from injured reserve in time for tonight’s game against Ottawa. That player is center Jake Evans, who has been activated off LTIR, according to the NHL’s Media Site.
Evans had a breakout performance last season, notching 36 points in 82 games while averaging more than 15 minutes per game of ice time. As a result, instead of being moved out at the trade deadline, the two sides worked out a four-year, $11.6MM extension to keep him with the franchise that drafted him in the seventh round back in 2014.
The early returns on that contract have been mixed. The 29-year-old was Montreal’s shutdown center in the first half of the season before he suffered a lower-body injury just after the holiday trade freeze. However, while he had some success in that role, his offensive numbers dropped considerably as he has just five goals and five assists in 34 games. Meanwhile, to give him some support defensively, the Canadiens brought back Phillip Danault in a pre-freeze swap with Los Angeles, just one day before Evans’ injury.
Evans, who was quietly moved to LTIR earlier this month, was expected to miss four to six weeks with a lower-body injury. This activation suggests that it will be the shorter of the two timelines although he has not been confirmed as being able to play against the Sens. Instead, Evans is officially listed as a game-time decision.
Montreal is currently without three other injured forwards, Kirby Dach, Patrik Laine, and Alex Newhook. The first two took part in practice yesterday and are believed to be nearing a return but the fact that they weren’t activated today suggests that they’re not quite ready to suit up in game action just yet.