It's a great day for hockey 2023-2024

[hockeygame3]

Bruins sign Zadorov, Lindholm

Sharks to ink Toffoli with four-year, $24 million contract

The Nashville Predators have won the Steven Stamkos sweepstakes, signing the forward to a four-year, $32 million deal, according to TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun.

The deal has an average annual value of $8 million.

As reported earlier but now a done deal, Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault and Brady Skjei all agree to terms in Nashville.

Maple Leafs sign Tanev for six years, extend Woll with three-year deal

Maple Leafs sign D Ekman-Larsson to four-year deal; sign goalies Stolarz, Murray

Canucks sign F DeBrusk to seven-year, $38.5 million deal, add F Heinen

Kraken land top defenceman Montour with seven-year contract

Sens send Chychrun to Capitals; sign Perron, Amadio, Gregor

[2pigpen]

nashville going all in

[hockeygame3]

Buchnevich signs 6-year, $48 million contract to stay with Blues
Forward had 63 points last season, could have become free agent after 2024-25

Lundell signs 6-year contract with Panthers
Forward had 35 points last season, helped Florida win Stanley Cup

NHL 2024-25 schedule released, begins with Global Series in Czechia on Oct. 4
Panthers will raise Stanley Cup banner before game against Bruins on Oct. 8

Blues sign D Joseph after acquiring his brother from Senators

Report: Penguins have made offer to free-agent Tarasenko

Bolts ink Atkinson to one-year, $900K deal

[2pigpen]

Buchnevich signs 6-year, $48 million contract to stay with Blues
Forward had 63 points last season, could have become free agent after 2024-25

good for him
I wouldn't mind having him on my 3
he's learned how to play the other side of the puck very well

[hockeygame3]

Campbell becomes 1st woman to coach in NHL, named Kraken assistant
Follows Bylsma to Seattle after 2 seasons with AHL affiliate in Coachella Valley

Tarasenko signs 2-year, $9.5 million contract with Red Wings
Forward had 55 points with Panthers, Senators last season, won Cup with Florida

Sharks sign Grundstrom, Dellandrea to two-year contracts

Roslovic inks one-year, $2.8M deal with Hurricanes

[hockeygame3]

Former NHL player Greg Johnson posthumously diagnosed with CTE

Former National Hockey League player Greg Johnson, who played 14 seasons in the league, has been posthumously diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, the brain-withering disease linked to repetitive brain trauma in contact sports.

Johnson’s family and the Concussion Legacy Foundation disclosed the news Wednesday in a joint statement, five years after his death by suicide.

Johnson’s daughter, Carson, used the moment to confront the NHL about its views on CTE. To date, the league has refused to acknowledge a link between repeated brain trauma and the disease.

“I had no idea what CTE even stood for when my dad took his life,” Carson said in a statement released by the Boston-based Concussion Legacy Foundation. “Now understanding that the hits he endured throughout his hockey career damaged his brain, I want all athletes to understand the risks and I want the NHL to start acknowledging it exists and do more to protect its players so other daughters don’t have to lose their fathers.”

Johnson, who was born in Thunder Bay, Ont., was 48 when he died on July 7, 2019, of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in Rochester, Mich.

Dr. Ann McKee, director of the Boston University CTE Center, diagnosed Johnson with CTE, but was unable to definitively stage it due to the manner of death.

“This diagnosis took my breath away,” Kristin, Johnson’s wife of 22 years, said in a statement. “Greg’s death shattered our world, and we never once thought this disease was something he struggled with. He experienced very few symptoms that we knew of, but he spoke of his concussions often.

“I remember the exact moment he told me his heart condition forcing him to retire was a blessing because he couldn’t take another hit. He knew his hockey career had a profound impact on his brain.”

Johnson was regarded as a solid two-way forward and was the second team captain of the Nashville Predators, where he played from 1998-2006.

Johnson played a total of 785 games in the NHL with the Predators, Chicago Blackhawks, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Detroit Red Wings. He won a silver medal with Team Canada at the 1994 Olympics in Lillehammer.

According to public records, the brains of 17 of 18 NHL players studied in the U.S. and Canada have now been diagnosed with CTE, including Ralph Backstrom, Henri Richard, Stan Mikita, Bob Probert, Steve Montador, and Bob Murdoch. CTE has also been diagnosed in amateur players.

Dr. McKee has acknowledged there’s a selection bias with the data because many families have donated brains specifically because the deceased player showed symptoms of CTE.

While the NFL admitted in 2016 that a link exists between repeated brain trauma and long-term neurological disorders, the NHL has rejected the connection.

On May 1, 2019, in Ottawa, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman told a Canadian parliamentary committee studying concussions in sports that no such association has been established.

“Other than some anecdotal evidence, there has not been that conclusive link… there has not been conclusive determinations,” Bettman testified.

[hockeygame3]

Torey Krug could miss the upcoming season for the St. Louis Blues because of an ankle issue.

The defenseman is out indefinitely after being diagnosed with pre-arthritic changes in his left ankle, which resulted from a bone fracture sustained earlier in his NHL career.

Krug will rehab over the next 6-8 weeks before being reevaluated to determine whether surgery is needed. If so, he will not play in the 2024-25 season.

Silovs signs 2-year contract with Canucks
Goalie played 10 playoff games last season, was restricted free agent

Pavelski retires from NHL after 18 seasons
Forward had 476 goals, 1,068 points with Stars, Sharks No cup for joe

[hockeygame3]

Evgeny Kuznetsov was placed on unconditional waivers by the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday for the purpose of terminating his contract.

The 32-year-old forward had one season left on an eight-year, $62.4 million contract he signed with the Washington Capitals on July 2, 2017. It had an average annual value of $3.9 million (Washington retained 50 percent of his salary after was traded to Carolina on March 8 for a third-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft).

"Ultimately both sides agreed this was the best course of action for both the player and the team," general manager Eric Tulsky told the Hurricanes website. "We thank Evgeny for his time with the team and wish him and his family the best."

[hockeygame3]

The Carolina Hurricanes put Evgeny Kuznetsov on unconditional waivers on Wednesday for the purpose of terminating his contract, a move that brings an abrupt end to the talented but inconsistent center's rollercoaster NHL career.

Kuznetsov was still owed $6 million of his $8 million salary in the final season of his $64.2 million, seven-year deal originally signed in 2017. He walks away from that and gets to keep the $2 million bonus paid earlier this month.

“Ultimately both sides agreed this was the best course of action for both the player and the team,” general manager Eric Tulsky said. “We thank Evgeny for his time with the team and wish him and his family the best.”

Reports emerged earlier in the week that Kuznetsov was planning to mutually terminate his contract and go home to Russia to play for SKA Saint Petersburg in the KHL. He and his camp had to agree to such a move for this to happen now, unless the Hurricanes waited for a buyout window to open later this summer when one of their restricted free agent arbitration cases was settled.

The Hurricanes have placed forward Evgeny Kuznetsov on unconditional waivers today, for the purpose of terminating his contract.

— Hurricanes PR (@CanesPR) July 17, 2024
Kuznetsov's agent, Craig Oster, did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment on the mutual termination or clarity on his client's future.

Carolina acquired Kuznetsov from Washington before the trade deadline in March, with the Capitals agreeing to retain half of his $7.8 million salary cap hit. His departure from North America removes the $3.9 million cap obligation for each team.

Kuznetsov was the leading scorer and Conn Smythe runner-up on the Capitals' 2018 Stanley Cup run but has been up and down since, the constant subject of trade rumors and speculation. He had 13 points in 30 games in a limited role with the Hurricanes as they reached the second round, and coach Rod Brind'Amour even made Kuznetsov a healthy scratch at one point during the playoff series against the New York Rangers.

His trouble was not just on the ice. The league in September 2019 suspended Kuznetsov three games without pay for “inappropriate conduct,” less than a month after he was banned from playing for Russia for four years because of a positive test for cocaine.

Kuznetsov more recently entered the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program in February. Upon him being cleared by program administrators to practice, the Capitals put him on waivers with the hope of giving him a fresh start and subsequently sent him to the minors.

Before playing a game for the American Hockey League’s Hershey Bears, Kuznetsov was traded to Carolina for a 2025 third-round pick.

Kuznetsov was the 26th pick in the draft by Washington in 2010. He has 206 goals and 442 assists for 648 points in 840 regular-season and playoff games since making his NHL debut in 2014.

I think his NHL days are over

[berry_good]

Matthew Tkachuk talks about growing up in St. Louis, bringing Stanley Cup home

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmnzGLlI1ic

[hockeygame3]

Konecny signs eight-year, $70 million extension with Flyers

Blue Jackets re-sign RFA Marchenko to three-year deal

Laine cleared to return from NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program


Wild sign Faber to eight-year, $68M extension

[hockeygame3]

Tocchet, Cassidy join Canada's coaching staff at 4 Nations Face-Off

Former NHL all-star Eric Staal is retiring after 18 seasons.

The Carolina Hurricanes announced Tuesday that Staal had signed a one-day contract to retire as a member of the organization that originally drafted him No. 2 overall in 2003 and won a Stanley Cup with him three years later.

The Hurricanes said they will retire Staal's No. 12 jersey in the upcoming season.

Celebrini 'couldn't be more excited' for 1st NHL training camp with Sharks
No. 1 pick in 2024 NHL Draft eager to help fuel turnaround, end 5-season playoff drought

[hockeygame3]

Matthews named Maple Leafs captain, replaces Tavares
Center is 1st U.S.-born player to hold role for Toronto; leads NHL in goals since entering League

Getzlaf joins NHL Department of Player Safety
Former center played 17 seasons for Ducks, won Stanley Cup in 2007

Rosen to retire as Rangers play-by-play announcer after this season
Hockey Hall of Famer has called games on MSG Networks for 40 years

[hockeygame3]

The Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers are preparing to begin their season without Evander Kane.

TSN's Ryan Rishaug reports the 33-year-old winger is unlikely to be ready for training camp with the process still underway as to what exactly needs to be done with the Vancouver native dealing with several significant issues.

My sense on Kane is surgery is the most likely course of action. Process is still underway to determine exactly what needs to be done, as there were several significant issues he was dealing with. He is not likely to be ready for training camp, and it could be several months…

— Ryan Rishaug (@TSNRyanRishaug) August 13, 2024
Rishaug notes that Kane, who is set to enter his 16th NHL season and fourth with the Oilers, could be out for several months.

He appeared in 77 games a year ago, scoring 24 goals and adding 20 assists. Kane had four goals and four assists in 20 postseason contests that saw the Oilers fall in seven games to the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Finals.

In 930 career games with the Oilers, San Jose Sharks, Buffalo Sabres and Winnipeg Jets/Atlanta Thrashers, Kane has 326 goals and 291 assists.

Kane has two seasons remaining on a four-year, $20.5 million deal.

On Tuesday, the St. Louis Blues signed restricted free-agent defenceman Philip Broberg and forward Dylan Holloway to deals worth just over a combined $6.87 million. The Oilers have seven days to match or decline the deals.

[hockeygame3]

The Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers are preparing to begin their season without Evander Kane.

TSN's Ryan Rishaug reports the 33-year-old winger is unlikely to be ready for training camp with the process still underway as to what exactly needs to be done with the Vancouver native dealing with several significant issues.

My sense on Kane is surgery is the most likely course of action. Process is still underway to determine exactly what needs to be done, as there were several significant issues he was dealing with. He is not likely to be ready for training camp, and it could be several months…

— Ryan Rishaug (@TSNRyanRishaug) August 13, 2024
Rishaug notes that Kane, who is set to enter his 16th NHL season and fourth with the Oilers, could be out for several months.

He appeared in 77 games a year ago, scoring 24 goals and adding 20 assists. Kane had four goals and four assists in 20 postseason contests that saw the Oilers fall in seven games to the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Finals.

In 930 career games with the Oilers, San Jose Sharks, Buffalo Sabres and Winnipeg Jets/Atlanta Thrashers, Kane has 326 goals and 291 assists.

Kane has two seasons remaining on a four-year, $20.5 million deal.

On Tuesday, the St. Louis Blues signed restricted free-agent defenceman Philip Broberg and forward Dylan Holloway to deals worth just over a combined $6.87 million. The Oilers have seven days to match or decline the deals.

[hockeygame3]

With the Toronto Maple Leafs transitioning the captaincy from John Tavares to Auston Matthews officially on Wednesday, there are six NHL teams that don’t have a captain heading into the 2024-25 campaign.

The Anaheim Ducks, Buffalo Sabres, Chicago Blackhawks, Seattle Kraken, Tampa Bay Lightning and Utah Hockey Club all do not currently have a captain, and while some had the captaincy recently vacated, others have gone multiple seasons without one.

The Ducks have not had a captain since Ryan Getzlaf in 2021-22. After his retirement, the team has gone two seasons without naming a replacement. Last season, they had three alternate captains in defenceman Cam Fowler and forwards Adam Henrique and Jakob Silfverberg.

Fowler is the only one of the three still on the roster and is under contract for two more seasons. He has been with the Ducks since being drafted in 2010, skating in 974 career NHL games.

Other potential candidates include winger Troy Terry, who is signed for the next four seasons and at 26, is one of the older core members of the Ducks. At 21, centre Mason McTavish has already worn an ‘A’ at times last season and previously captained Canada on the international stage.

In Buffalo, veteran Kyle Okposo wore the ‘C’ for two seasons before getting dealt at last year’s trade deadline to the Florida Panthers and winning a Stanley Cup. With the Sabres’ core maturing, it’s time for one of those players to have the responsibility.

The Sabres have a number of players signed long term, but Rasmus Dahlin is their most important and after wearing an ‘A’ the last three seasons, the 24-year-old defenceman is the leading candidate to be their next captain.

After 15 seasons with Jonathan Toews as their captain, the Blackhawks didn’t name one last season after parting ways with Toews following the 2022-23 season. Chicago had several different players wear the ‘A’ last season, including Seth Jones, Connor Murphy and Nick Foligno, but the logical successor to Toews as captain is Calder Trophy winner Connor Bedard.

The Kraken are heading into their fourth NHL season and the lone captain they did have, Mark Giordano, lasted less than one season as he was dealt at the 2022 trade deadline to the Maple Leafs. Since then, veterans Jordan Eberle, Adam Larsson, Yanni Gourde and Jaden Schwartz have primarily been their alternate captains as Seattle’s younger core of players continues to grow into being full-time NHLers.

In Tampa Bay, Victor Hedman is the leading favourite to take over as captain after Steven Stamkos departed as a free agent. Stamkos wore the ‘C’ for 10 seasons with the Lightning while Hedman has been an alternate for the past six seasons. Hedman has been a part of the franchise since 2009 and was critical in them winning back-to-back Stanley Cup titles in 2020 and 2021.

The Utah Hockey Club will make its debut this season after making the move from Arizona. Oliver Ekman-Larsson last wore the ‘C’ for the franchise in 2020-21 before he was traded to Vancouver.

As for leading candidates to be the first captain in Utah franchise history, forwards Lawson Crouse and Clayton Keller are the two players on the current roster who served as alternates the past two seasons.

[hockeygame3]

Well, that did not take long

The Montreal Canadiens have acquired forward Patrik Laine and a 2026 second-round pick from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for defenceman Jordan Harris.

The Canadiens have traded defenseman Jordan Harris to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for forward Patrik Laine and a second-round pick in 2026

News release ↓ #GoHabsGo https://t.co/EEuIsLb32E

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) August 19, 2024
Laine, 26, recorded six goals and nine points in 18 games in a season that was mired with injuries.

The 6-foot-5 winger also entered the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program in January citing the need to look after his mental health.

He was cleared to return from the program on July 26.

There was no salary retained on Patrik Laine in the trade with Montreal.

— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) August 19, 2024
TSN Hockey Insider Chris Johnston confirmed there was no salary retained in the trade.

Laine is on the third season of a four-year, $34.8 million deal with an annual cap hit of $8.7 million. He is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2025-26 season.

Drafted second overall by the Winnipeg Jets in 2016, Laine has 204 goals and 388 points in 480 career games split between the Jets and Blue Jackets.

The Tampere, Finland, native represented Finland at the 2016 World Championship in Russia and recorded seven goals and 12 points and was named tournament MVP in a silver-medal performance.

He also represented his country at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey in an eighth-place finish.

[hockeygame3]

The American Hockey League has mandated cut-resistant neck protection for all of its players and on-ice officials, commissioner Scott Howson announced on Friday.

All skaters will be required to wear approved neck protection beginning this season, regardless of age or experience. The league previous mandated cut-socks and wrist sleeves be implemented prior to the 2023-24 campaign.

The American Hockey League’s Board of Governors has unanimously approved the mandatory use of cut-resistant neck protection by all its players and on-ice officials, beginning with the upcoming 2024-25 season.

: https://t.co/JxiJXb6d0f pic.twitter.com/znwpHA3IjH

— American Hockey League (@TheAHL) August 23, 2024
The move was made after former AHL and NHL player Adam Johnson died when his throat was cut by a skate during a game in the Elite Ice Hockey League in England.

Johnson's death led to the Canadian Hockey League instituting similar measures in November of 2023 and USA Hockey activating a policy that requires all players 18-years-old or younger to wear neck protection in all games and practices beginning on Aug. 1.

The NHL does not currently have a policy in place to require its players to wear neck protection, but numerous players have added a neck guard in wake of the incident.

[2pigpen]

^^^ probably a good idea
the nhl won’t mandate it for players in the league now I imagine but will do similar mandates as to wearing helmets and then visors grandfathering in everyone going forward

Craig MacTavish anyone

[hockeygame3]

The NHL’s current Collective Bargaining Agreement is set to expire at the end of the 2025-26 regular season. And though the NHL has been in a period of meaningful labour peace since the shortened 2012-13 season, there are early signs the league and Players’ Association may be preparing for a fight.

Unlike some of the other North American sports leagues, the NHL’s rebound from the “COVID years” has been materially slower from a revenue perspective.

The slowdown in year-over-year growth can be attributable to many things beyond the pandemic, though: Canadian macroeconomics, increased competition in the North American sports landscape, challenges with broadcast rightsholders in the United States, and even a de facto forced relocation are just a sample of the financial obstacles facing the league. Those obstacles have created fiscal headwinds, and it’s why you have seen the salary cap ceiling struggling to grow year over year.

Each of those issues necessitates its own course of action, and some of these challenges just require time to solve.

The relocation of the Arizona Coyotes is a good example. What was largely an anchor tied around the neck of the NHL for more than a decade could become a revenue tailwind in Utah. And while slowed growth is of concern, the NHL is still a lucrative business that captivates a wide audience – just last season, the league set a new attendance record.

Rest assured, there will be a fight of some kind over the apportionment and sharing of hockey-related revenues between the parties. The only question fans ultimately care about: Will those negotiations have an adverse impact to a future regular season, as it has routinely in past negotiations?

One thing that’s certain is that the players are preparing this time around. The canary in the coal mine remains signing bonuses. We talk about signing bonuses frequently in the context of the challenges they pose for components of roster-building like buyouts, which are calculated excluding remaining signing bonus money owed. It’s why you colloquially hear contracts soaked in signing-bonus money are buyout proof in nature.

Contracts loaded with signing bonuses offer one other element: they can be lockout proof. Since signing bonuses are typically paid in the off-season during the summer months, they precede whatever impact a CBA stalemate may have on the approaching regular season. If a regular season is disrupted without a contract in place, player salaries are effectively frozen.

Players signing multi-year deals right now typically have more bargaining power than your true depth forwards and defenders who bounce around the league. This is one of several ways they can negotiate favourable terms, and NHL front offices – often caught in the middle of labour disputes between league ownership and players – are willing to comply, especially if it means they can squeeze out an extra year of term for the player, or reduce a player’s cap hit in the process.

What you get is a meaningful shift in contract structure, and this is a trend I anticipate will accelerate over the next year as more contracts carry through the 2026-27 regular season.

And remember: every player paid through a signing bonus is one less player financially impacted by a lockout, the most commonly utilized pressure point in past labour negotiations.