Five Key Stories: 9/9/24 – 9/15/24
09/15/2024 10:09 PM
With training camps on the horizon, PTO agreements were the theme of the week with many veterans taking one to get a landing spot for training camp. In the meantime, there was some other notable news across the NHL which is recapped in our key stories.
Columbus Adds A Veteran: On Saturday, Blue Jackets GM Don Waddell indicated that he would be looking to add a forward or two heading into training camp. He wasted little time getting one of them as the team signed veteran winger James van Riemsdyk to a one-year, $900K contract. The 35-year-old is coming off a decent season in Boston, one that saw him record 11 goals and 27 assists in 71 games despite averaging just 13:30 per night, his lowest ATOI since his rookie campaign in 2009-10. Columbus is certainly on the lookout for some scoring help following the trade of Patrik Laine and the tragic death of Johnny Gaudreau while forward Justin Danforth is also now injured so it wouldn't be surprising to see them do something else fairly quickly.
Surgery For Kane: For months now, it has been expected that Oilers winger Evander Kane was going to miss time with the injury that sidelined him late in the playoffs. We now know the nature of the injury as it was revealed that the veteran will undergo sports hernia surgery within the next week. Kane played through the injury for a good chunk of the regular season and most of the playoffs but was only able to dress in two games in the Stanley Cup Final. There's no word on exactly how long the procedure will keep Kane out for but assuming it's for more than 10 games and 24 days, Edmonton will be able to place him on LTIR if they need to in order to keep cap-compliant.
Four For Larsson: Veteran defenseman Adam Larsson was picked by Seattle in expansion despite being a pending unrestricted free agent although he was quickly signed to a four-year deal. The 31-year-old has been a solid defender in his first three seasons with them while even managing a career year offensively in 2022-23. He was rewarded for his efforts earlier in the week as the Kraken signed him to a four-year, $21MM contract extension which begins in the 2025-26 season. The deal represents a $1.1MM per season raise from his current deal and carries full trade protection for the first two years before it drops to a 15-team no-trade clause.
Shoulder Injury For Hughes: With this being a contract year for Devils defenseman Luke Hughes, it's safe to say he was hoping to get off to a strong start to his season. That won't be the case now as the team announced that he suffered a left shoulder injury while training, one that will keep him out for six to eight weeks. That means the 21-year-old will miss all of training camp, the preseason, and the start of the regular season. Hughes had a promising rookie year, recording 47 points in 82 games last season which helped make him a finalist for the Calder Trophy. He'll now have to wait a little longer to try to build off that performance.
Toronto Signs Three: The Maple Leafs were busy finalizing their roster heading into training camp. First, they took care of their last remaining restricted free agent, re-signingNicholas Robertson to a one-year, $875K contract. The 23-year-old had 27 points in 56 games last season but had made it known his preference was to get a change of scenery. Now, he'll look to make an impression under new head coach Craig Berube and establish himself higher in the lineup.
Meanwhile, they added two new players to the team as well. Veteran Max Pacioretty signed a PTO agreement although his agent, Octagon's Allan Walsh, quickly noted that they expect to have a contract in place by the start of the regular season. The 35-year-old has battled injuries the last three seasons but still managed to record 23 points in 47 games with Washington in 2023-24. Lastly, the team finally inked defenseman Jani Hakanpaa, who they had agreed to terms with on the opening day of free agency. However, the terms are slightly different. Instead of a two-year, $3MM agreement, he received a one-year, $1.47MM contract with an eight-team no-trade clause. Hakanpaa was a physical presence on the back end in Dallas last season but there are concerns over his knee after missing the end of the season and the playoffs due to injury.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
