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Oilers Sign David Tomasek To One-Year Deal
The Oilers announced they’ve signed free agent center David Tomasek to a one-year contract for 2025-26 worth $1.2MM. The 29-year-old is expected to end up on Edmonton’s opening night roster next fall.
Tomasek, a 6’2″, 187-lb center, lands his first NHL contract after spending the last 10 seasons in top-level professional leagues across Europe. The Prague native can play both down the middle and at right wing.
While he’s long been an effective scoring presence overseas, 2024-25 saw Tomasek reach new heights. After leading the Swedish Hockey League in goals last year, he took home the overall scoring title by posting 24-33–57 in 47 games for Färjestad BK. He managed only two assists in six playoff games as his club was upset by Skellefteå AIK in the quarterfinals of the SHL playoffs, though, ending his season Monday.
A well-rounded offensive talent and heavy power-play contributor overseas, Tomasek has experience in four of the best leagues in Europe – the SHL, Czech Extraliga, Finland’s Liiga, and the Kontinental Hockey League. He was at his peak in Sweden with Färjestad, though, posting 49-53–102 in 99 games for the club over the last two seasons. Hitting the point-per-game mark in the SHL is no easy feat – only three qualified players did it this season, the most since eight did it in 2021-22. Tomasek’s 1.21 points per game cleared Penguins prospect Filip Hallander’s 1.04 by a significant margin for first place.
Tomasek’s professional career has also involved stints with HC Dynamo Pardubice, JYP, HC Sparta Prague, and Amur Khabarovsk. He’s clicked around a 0.60 points-per-game pace with those clubs before joining Färjestad.
While it’s Tomasek’s first NHL deal, it’s not his first time playing in North America. He played his youth hockey in Michigan before playing a pair of major junior seasons with the Belleville Bulls of the Ontario Hockey League in 2013-14 and 2014-15, recording 26-32–58 in 119 games there while going undrafted by an NHL club.
Tomasek becomes the 11th forward Edmonton has on a one-way deal next season. They have no pending RFAs up front on the NHL roster, although minor-league names like top prospect Matthew Savoie should be considered likely to make a push for an opening-night job. That, along with what should be limited cap space after working out a new deal for star RFA defenseman Evan Bouchard, means the Oilers won’t be very active up front on the NHL free agent market this summer. A couple of cap-clearing trades could make things easier – veterans Viktor Arvidsson and Evander Kane are some candidates there – but it’s clear Edmonton’s priority lies with acquiring low-cost talent to help fill out their depth lines next year. The Oilers also signed German center Josh Samanski to an entry-level deal earlier today, but he’s likely ticketed for AHL Bakersfield out of the gate.
Will Mitch Marner Reach Free Agency This Summer?
Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner is just three months away from becoming an unrestricted free agent, and with each passing day, the likelihood that he will test the market increases. But will he choose to leave the only NHL team he has ever played for? Only Marner knows the answer, but many factors are involved in this complicated situation. Many people will point to earning potential as the main factor in why Marner might test free agency, but there are personal and professional reasons why he might feel the time is right to look elsewhere.
As Marner showed during his last contract negotiations in 2019, he and his agent were willing to be patient in getting their number. Those negotiations spilled well into September before the 27-year-old signed a six-year, $65.358MM contract extension. An interesting note from those discussions was that Marner received several offer sheets from other teams at the time but did not entertain those offers as he prioritized staying with Toronto. This time around, Marner can get any NHL team involved in negotiations if he waits until July 1, which should lead to loftier contract demands on a longer term. It’s worth noting that Marner’s agent, Darren Ferris, has a history of bringing clients right to the deadline when negotiating (see William Nylander).
Marner’s current AAV of just under $11MM represented 13.37% of the NHL salary cap at the time, and with the rising cap, it would not be unreasonable for him to ask for the same number as a UFA. If he did, he would be looking at a contract with a cap hit of $12.77MM, a tick lower than teammate Auston Matthews’ cap hit of $13.25MM. For context, Matthews’ contract represented 15.07% of the salary cap when he signed it. Marner would be taking a smaller slice of the pie.
Matthews and Nylander have both signed pricey extensions. While Marner is undoubtedly a game-changer, it would be tough to commit to those three once again, given that they haven’t advanced past the second round of the playoffs, which hinders salary cap flexibility. There is a fair argument that you pay your stars and figure out the depth as you go, but eventually, those depth players also need to get paid, as Toronto has found out over the last few years. The Maple Leafs don’t have a lot of help coming from their farm system, evidenced by their recent ranking as the 28th-best prospect pool in the NHL (per Scott Wheeler of The Athletic), which means they will need to make trades or sign players in free agency to fill out their depth. If they have tied up 40% of their cap space in three players, adding free agents or taking chances on players who underperform but have upside will become increasingly challenging – not to mention re-signing pending RFA Matthew Knies or former captain John Tavares.
Marner is from and knows the fishbowl that is the Greater Toronto Area. When the team wins, the players are treated as heroes; however, the opposite can be true when the team drops games. The last sentence is especially relevant in the playoffs, where the Maple Leafs have suffered through years of postseason disappointments. If Toronto endures another early playoff exit, Marner could be tempted to leave Toronto and try to win elsewhere. In the past, Marner has dealt with heavy criticism from fans and media in Toronto, which could push him to seek a less intense market or one where he could enjoy some anonymity away from the rink. The pressure of playing in a Canadian market is well documented, and it can create fatigue, particularly for a player who has spent his entire career in that environment.
Former Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas was close to Marner in Toronto. Now Brad Treliving has taken over with Dubas in Pittsburgh, and it’s hard to say whether Marner will have the same loyalty during negotiations. Some folks in Pittsburgh have speculated that Dubas and the Penguins will make a run at signing Marner this summer, but given where Pittsburgh is in their retooling, it’s hard to see them adding a player of Marner’s caliber just yet. The Penguins are still a few years from being ready to contend for a playoff spot and likely don’t look desirable to Marner outside of his relationships with Dubas and Penguins captain Sidney Crosby.
Yet Marner has spent his entire professional career with the Leafs and his whole playing career in Canada. Marner played junior hockey in nearby London and has not lived more than a few hours from the GTA. Although athletes often move away from their hometowns, they typically don’t begin this process when nearing 30. This is not to say it doesn’t happen; it’s just unusual.
With a rising cap, plenty of teams can afford Marner, but how many can offer a better situation than Marner currently has in Toronto? Sure, Buffalo and Pittsburgh could afford him, but the Sabres haven’t made the playoffs in nearly a decade and a half, and Pittsburgh is retooling and likely won’t field a winner for another few years.
San Jose could make a compelling pitch, as Marner would have a chance to play with Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith. But Marner already has talented former top picks to play with and has the added comforts of home and familiarity. Carolina will be another interested party, but it seems like an unlikely destination, given that Marner reportedly turned down a trade to the Hurricanes a few weeks ago.
Toronto remains very much inside its competitive window with a core that still includes Matthews, Nylander, Morgan Rielly and company. And while the core has not had much playoff success, winning just one series ever, they have been a terrific regular season team for nearly a decade. The great teams almost always suffer heartbreak in the postseason before they figure out how to win when it matters, and the Maple Leafs could be a team that does that if Marner remains along for the ride. Toronto has most of their squad already locked in to return next season and could get a couple of runs at the Stanley Cup with this group.
Toronto has arguably overpaid all its stars over the past decade and has struggled to get players to take a discount to remain with the Maple Leafs. In fairness to Toronto’s management, if the Maple Leafs didn’t step up and pay their stars, someone else would have. The case is the same with Marner; if he reaches the market, another team will meet his asking price. It is the inevitability of unrestricted free agency, and the Maple Leafs will have to get close to Marner’s price if they want to keep him.
Plenty of NHL players have found out the hard way that the grass isn’t always greener with a new team, and those free-agent dollars can sometimes become an anchor that brings a player down. The familiarity of playing in your hometown for tens of millions of dollars and not having to start over in a new city feels as though it should be enough to keep Marner in Toronto. So, too, does the personal side of things, as players prefer playing closer to home as they age and begin having families.
Still, each passing day ultimately narrows the possibility of a return just a little bit more. However, the Maple Leafs remain the favorite to sign Marner long-term, as the allure of chasing a Stanley Cup with his hometown team will be too much to pass up.
Photo courtesy of Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images.
Oilers Sign Josh Samanski To Entry-Level Deal
The Oilers are the first team to make a foray into this year’s European free-agent market. They announced they’d signed 23-year-old forward Josh Samanski to a two-year, entry-level contract beginning next year. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Samanski crosses the pond for the second time in his playing career. The German forward previously played junior hockey in Canada, suiting up for the Junior ’A’ Brantford 99ers in 2018-19 before spending 2019-20 with the Owen Sound Attack of the Ontario Hockey League. After completing his junior career when the pandemic hit in 2020, he took his talents back home.
The 2020-21 season saw him make his professional debut with the Ravensburg Towerstars of the DEL2, Germany’s second-tier pro league. He notched 22 points in 41 games for the club while also representing his country at the World Juniors, something he’d also do as an alternate captain in 2022.
That was Samanski’s last meaningful stint outside of a top-flight professional league. He cracked the Straubing Tigers’ roster the following season to play in the high-level DEL and has remained with the team ever since. The 6’5″, 190-lb center/left-winger has steadily upped his point totals over his quartet of campaigns in Straubing, culminating with a breakout 14-goal, 40-point campaign in 52 appearances this season.
He’ll now join an NHL training camp for the first time in Edmonton next fall. He’ll try to crack the roster as a cheap depth scoring option but could be destined for AHL Bakersfield instead. It’s unclear if his deal has a European assignment clause, which may force the Oilers to loan Samanski back to Germany after a certain amount of time if he’s not on the NHL roster. His contract with Straubing expired after this season, though. He’ll be a restricted free agent when his ELC expires in 2027.
Utah Signs Tomas Lavoie To Entry-Level Deal
The Utah Hockey Club signed defense prospect Tomas Lavoie to his entry-level contract. The three-year deal presumably begins with the 2025-26 campaign. He could still finish the year on a tryout with AHL Tucson.
Lavoie was a third-round pick in last year’s draft, technically part of Utah’s first class of selections after the franchise acquired the Coyotes’ hockey operations assets. The 19-year-old has spent the last three seasons with the Cape Breton Eagles of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. Since he just had his birthday on Monday, he’s not old enough for a full-time AHL assignment next season and will be returned to the Eagles for a fourth QMJHL season next fall in the likely event he doesn’t make Utah’s NHL roster out of training camp. His ELC would slide to 2026-27 in that scenario, running through the 2028-29 campaign.
A Quebec native, Utah selected Lavoie with a pick Arizona acquired from the Avalanche in the 2021 Darcy Kuemper trade. The 6’4″, 215-lb righty projects as a defensive specialist at the professional level but has a decent offensive toolbox, evidenced by his breakout campaign in Cape Breton in 2024-25. After recording 40 points through his first 124 QMJHL games, he exploded for 15-40–55 in 60 games this season to lead Eagles defensemen in scoring.
McKeen’s Hockey didn’t rank Lavoie among their top 15 prospects in Utah’s system in their preseason rankings, but by the time February rolled around, Scott Wheeler of The Athletic tabbed him as the No. 9 talent in their pool. He notes Lavoie’s footspeed has improved since last season and tabs him as a likely third-pair option for Utah in the future and a legitimate depth call-up option at minimum.
He’ll likely join the Roadrunners for the final few weeks of the regular season, joining Utah’s No. 2 and 3-ranked defense prospects in Maveric Lamoureux and Artem Duda. He’ll jump to Tucson full-time in 2026-27 before competing for an NHL job.
Canadiens Recall Oliver Kapanen
The Canadiens have recalled forward Oliver Kapanen from his loan to Timrå IK of the Swedish Hockey League, the team announced. He’ll join the NHL roster and could be on hand for tomorrow’s game against the Bruins. Their active roster will stand at 23 players with the move.
Kapanen, 21, has had an unusual season. The 2021 second-round pick had an exceptional training camp and cracked Montreal’s opening night roster – much to the surprise of Timrå, who planned on him being a core piece of their group this year when they signed him to a two-year contract last summer. Kapanen’s run in the NHL ended in early November, though, and since he’s spent fewer than 60 days on the NHL roster and wasn’t a first-round pick, he had to be offered back to Timrå instead of being sent to AHL Laval. Understandably, Timrå took the opportunity to bring him back into the fold.
Timrå dropped their playoff quarterfinal series to Frölunda HC last weekend, so Kapanen’s season overseas is over – making him free to rejoin the Habs. The 6’0″ center appeared in 12 of Montreal’s first 13 games before being returned to Sweden, recording a pair of assists and a minus-four rating. He managed 13 shots on goal and won 46% of his faceoffs while averaging 11:38 per game. He didn’t factor into Montreal’s penalty kill but did receive some power-play deployment, recording one of his helpers with the man advantage. At even strength, Kapanen only controlled 41.7% of shot attempts and 39.0% of expected goals, letting the Habs know there’s room for improvement in his possession game.
In Sweden, the nephew of ex-NHLer Sami Kapanen and the cousin of the Oilers’ Kasperi Kapanen had a monster year as expected. He was a core piece of Timrå’s fourth-ranked offense out of 14 SHL teams, placing fourth on the club with 15-20–35 in 36 games. He added two goals and an assist in their six-game loss to Frölunda.
Kapanen is one of the better forwards in a loaded Canadiens prospect pool, ranking No. 9 in the system per Scott Wheeler of The Athletic. A projectable third-line center with a responsible defensive game, he faces internal competition for the role from 2022 second-rounder Owen Beck (No. 7). They have comparable two-way ceilings. However, when all is said and done, the latter will likely have more upward mobility in an NHL lineup. Beck, who’s back in Laval after an NHL call-up earlier this year, has one assist and a minus-three rating through his first 13 NHL games.
It’ll be the former getting the chance to slot into the lineup for Montreal down their most crucial stretch run in four years. Following last night’s huge overtime win over the Panthers, they sit two points ahead of the Blue Jackets for the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference with a 35-30-9 record, but Columbus has a game in hand. Still, the Habs’ playoff chances are over 50%, per MoneyPuck. While he may not slot in down the middle with Nick Suzuki, Alex Newhook, Christian Dvorak, and Jake Evans set as their center corps, he could get a chance on the wing over fourth-line enforcer Michael Pezzetta.
Sabres Reassign Isak Rosen
April 2: Rosen was loaned back to Rochester today, the Sabres announced. He appeared in Buffalo’s first three games following last week’s recall but was scratched for their wins in Washington and Ottawa on Sunday and Tuesday, respectively. He managed to get on the scoresheet for the first time in his NHL career, recording an assist in last Thursday’s 7-3 drubbing of the Penguins.
March 25: The Sabres announced they’ve recalled right-winger Isak Rosen from AHL Rochester today. Rosen will replace Brett Murray, who the team announced was returned to the AHL ahead of tonight’s game against the Senators.
It’s been less than three weeks since Rosen’s last NHL game, as the Sabres continue to give the winger only limited looks in their lineup. The 2021 No. 14 overall pick is still looking for his first NHL point, failing to get on the scoresheet in 10 career appearances, including three this year. His possession numbers have provided little reason for optimism, as Rosen only controlled 41.9% of shot attempts at even strength in his limited minutes.
In the AHL, though, he’s hit his stride. Rosen has scored 27-27–54 with a +11 rating in 55 games with the Americans, leading the team in scoring and clicking at nearly a point per game. His offensive totals have steadily improved throughout the 22-year-old’s three seasons in Rochester, from 0.56 points per game in 2022-23 to 0.75 in 2023-24 and now 0.98 this year.
Playoffs are all but officially out of reach for the 28-35-6 Sabres, so with a race to finish outside of last place in the Eastern now their only objective, Buffalo will use the stretch run to continue evaluating its young talent amid a rash of injuries to their forward group. There were many updates on that front f today. While Joshua Norris will miss today’s clash against his former team with what’s now being labeled a mid-body injury, he told Paul Hamilton of WGR Sports Radio 550 that he’s day-to-day and plans to return before the end of the regular season. Meanwhile, Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News confirms that Jordan Greenway (lower body) and Sam Lafferty (groin) remain day-to-day and won’t play against Ottawa. Rookie center Jiri Kulich, though, skated this morning and could return after missing four games while in concussion protocol.
Rosen will likely get a look on the third line alongside Kulich and veteran winger Jason Zucker if the team’s line rushes this morning are accurate. They only have 12 healthy forwards, including Kulich, so they’ll need to dress seven defensemen if he can’t go.
The 26-year-old Murray heads back to Rochester after receiving a brief look in fourth-line minutes over the last week. The 6’5″ left-winger went without a point in three games but secured his fourth NHL season of playing time. The 2016 fourth-rounder now has 26 career games with Buffalo and 96-101–197 in 314 career games with Rochester, where he serves as an alternate captain.
Devils Recall Seamus Casey
The Devils announced they’ve called up top defense prospect Seamus Casey from AHL Utica. No corresponding move was made, nor was one necessary. There aren’t any new injury designations on New Jersey’s blue line, so it’s likely a performance-driven recall.
Casey, 21, was a second-round pick by the Devils in 2022. He signed his entry-level contract last May following two seasons at the University of Michigan and, after a strong training camp last fall, found himself on New Jersey’s opening night roster while Luke Hughes and Brett Pesce were sidelined with season-opening injuries. He only lasted a couple of weeks, returning to the AHL in late October, and has remained with Utica since, aside from a second recall that stretched from Feb. 18 to March 7.
Now in his first professional season, Casey ranks as the No. 3 prospect in the Devils system, per Scott Wheeler of The Athletic. Wheeler also ranks him as the No. 57 prospect in the league, 21st among defensemen and 13th among righties. McKeen’s Hockey ranked him No. 2 in their preseason rankings but didn’t deem Simon Nemec eligible as a prospect, while Wheeler did. Almost universally, Casey ranks behind Nemec and 2024 No. 10 overall pick Anton Silayev among New Jersey defenders who have yet to establish themselves as NHL regulars.
Casey has posted intriguing results in his limited NHL minutes this season. He’s scored four goals and added an assist in 10 games despite averaging under 12 minutes per game, adding a plus-five rating to boot. Head coach Sheldon Keefe’s distrust in him, shown in his earlier recalls, almost certainly stems from his poor possession impacts. Despite receiving 68.3% of his even-strength zone starts in offensive deployment, Casey has only controlled 41.6% of shot attempts.
In the minors, Casey has fared well this season but not quite as well as Nemec. He ranks third among Utica defensemen in scoring with 3-15–18 in 30 games, trailing Nemec (5-18–23 in 34 GP) and Topias Vilén (1-18–19 in 40 GP).
With only six regular-season games left on the Devils’ schedule and third place in the Metropolitan Division a virtual guarantee, it makes sense for them to give one of their top prospects one last NHL audition down the stretch. It’s hard to envision him being in the playoff lineup, especially with news earlier today that fellow righty Dougie Hamilton could be an option to return before or during the first round, but he could theoretically establish himself as a better option for a bottom-pairing puck-mover over Nemec, who holds the role for the time being.
Devils’ Dougie Hamilton Recovering Faster Than Expected
Dougie Hamilton could return to the Devils lineup sooner than previously thought. Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reports today there’s an outside chance of their top defenseman returning during the regular season, with a return during the first round of the playoffs looking more likely. Hamilton started skating last week after general manager Tom Fitzgerald said they weren’t expecting him back until a possible second-round series.
The 2021 All-Star has been out since sustaining a lower-body injury on March 4. New Jersey has gone 7-5-1 in 13 games without him, enough to tighten their grip on third place in the Metropolitan Division despite also missing top-four defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler and star center Jack Hughes, the latter of whom won’t be returning this year no matter how deep of a playoff run the Devils can make. He underwent surgery on his right shoulder on March 5 and is done for the year.
This is the second year in a row that Hamilton, in year four of a seven-year deal carrying a $9MM AAV, has missed significant time. Luckily for the Devils and Hamilton, the two ailments are unrelated. A torn pectoral muscle ended his 2023-24 season in November.
Aside from his injury troubles, it hasn’t been a notable season for Hamilton. After New Jersey added Brenden Dillon and Brett Pesce in free agency last summer and traded for Johnathan Kovacevic, they’ve opted to spread out their rearguards’ usage and no longer have a clear No. 1. Hamilton’s average time on ice has dropped below 20 minutes per game for the first time since 2018-19 as a result, and his production has suffered in kind. 9-31–40 through 63 games is still a strong scoring line, on pace for 52 points and the fifth-highest points-per-game rate of his career, but it’s still disappointing after he put up 90 points in 102 games across the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons.
The buck continues to fall on 21-year-old Luke Hughes to be Jersey’s top offensive producer from the blue line in the interim. He’s holding up his end of the bargain, on pace to slightly better last year’s totals that earned him third place in Calder Trophy voting. He’s also clicking at over a point per game (2-11–13 in 12 GP) since Hamilton went down. Nonetheless, having both of their standard power-play weapons back on the blue line in a nearly locked-in first-round matchup against the Hurricanes will be key.
East Notes: Norris, Greenway, Staal, Fabbro, Roy
The Buffalo Sabres are working on winning their second consecutive game without a pair of forwards. Earlier today, TSN reported that Sabres’ Joshua Norris wouldn’t make his return to Ottawa this evening as he remains away from the team due to a mid-body injury, and Jordan Greenway has missed his fifth straight game with a lower-body injury (Tweet Link).
Despite being acquired by Buffalo at the trade deadline, Norris has only appeared in three games for the Sabres. He’s been productive in those contests, scoring one goal and one assist, averaging 18:36 of ice time a night, and maintaining a 54.0% playoff race. There’s no word on whether or not Norris’s season has ended, but he may be better served by fully healing from his current injury to start the 2025-26 season fresh for Buffalo.
Meanwhile, Greenway is similarly prone to injuries, especially this season. The gritty middle-six forward has only appeared in 34 of the Sabres’ 74 games this season, scoring three goals and eight points. Still, although he’s missed over half of the team’s regular season contests, the Sabres to a two-year, $8MM extension with mild trade protection.
Other injury notes from the Eastern Conference:
- According to Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer, Carolina Hurricanes’ captain Jordan Staal is unlikely to suit up tomorrow against the Washington Capitals. Staal is dealing with a lower-body injury, but it’s not considered severe, as Alexander notes he would only be withheld from the lineup for precautionary reasons. Depth forward Tyson Jost will likely take Staal’s place in the lineup should he miss a second consecutive contest.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets benefited greatly tonight from the return of defenseman Dante Fabbro from an undisclosed injury (Tweet Link). After tallying three points in the team’s recent win against the Vancouver Canucks, Fabbro missed against the Senators before returning tonight. In an equally promising game, Fabbro scored one goal and one assist in 20:41 of ice time.
- Defenseman Dylan McIlrath has already made his presence in the Washington Capitals lineup felt tonight after engaging in a heavyweight bout with Boston Bruins’ forward, Jeffrey Viel. The only reason McIlrath is in the lineup tonight is that Matt Roy is out for familial reasons, as reported by Bailey Johnson of The Washington Post. There’s no timeline for Roy’s return.