Here are some of the news and rumors that took place in the NHL today!
On the eve of the opening of the free agent market, there were several moves in the NHL today.
Earlier today, the Flyers found Shayne Gostisbehere's replacement, while they will make the signing of veteran Keith Yandle official tomorrow. They will sign Yandle to a one-season deal worth $900,000. The Flyers will have a whole new look at the blue line, with the acquisitions of Ryan Ellis, Rasmus Ristolainen, and now Yandle. With these new acquisitions a return to the playoffs is pretty much mandatory in their case.
The St. Louis Blues have secured the services of their new forward Pavel Buchnevich with a four-year deal. The latest will pay him $5.8 million annually. He was acquired from the Rangers in exchange for forward Samuel Blais, and a second round pick. Buchnevich will have to make up for the loss of Jaden Schwartz and Mike Hoffman, who will become unrestricted free agents tomorrow.
According to rumors, Phil Kessel played his last game with the Arizona Coyotes. The Florida Panthers and the Vegas Golden Knights could show interest in the right winger.
The Washington Capitals and Vancouver Canucks are actively pursuing goaltender Antti Raanta. The Capitals lost Vitek Vanecek in the expansion draft and the Canucks just bought out Braden Holtby's contract. These teams will likely be looking for an experienced goaltender to back up their youngsters in front of the net, better known as Ilya Samsonov and Thatcher Demko.
The Edmonton Oilers and the Colorado Avalanche are reportedly interested in the services of giant goalie Darcy Kuemper. The Oilers still don't know if Mike Smith will be back. In the meanwhile in Colorado, they seem to want to bring in help for starting goaltender Philipp Grubauer.
Patrik Laine has accepted a qualifying offer from the Columbus Blue Jackets. He will receive a salary of $7.5 million for one season only. He will then become a restricted free agent again if he does not sign a new deal during the season.
After only one season with the team, the Canucks traded defenseman Nate Schmidt to the Winnipeg Jets for a third round pick in 2022. The Jets just acquired their second defenseman in 24 hours, as they acquired veteran Brenden Dillon from the Washington Capitals yesterday.
The Panthers extended defenseman Brandon Montour's stay in Florida for three years. The latest will generate an average salary of $3.5 million annually. This will be one less target for Marc Bergevin, who will likely be looking for a right-handed defenseman capable of playing on the top-4.
