Prices may very well decline later in the summer or during the middle of the season — particularly when teams are no longer in contention and might choose to trade certain players. In the past, Hughes has expressed interest in making significant trades, but he has stepped back when the costs became too high for his comfort. The Blackhawks took a significant risk, making it clear why Hughes was not enthusiastic about these kinds of trades. According to Hughes — the Canadiens have been actively engaging in trade talks as the NHL Trade Deadline approached; however, similar to early March, Montreal has been unable to execute any substantial moves. This summer has proven to be quite eventful for numerous teams, as significant forwards and defensemen have been traded for substantial returns, which are much larger than what was seen in previous years.
Trevor Zegras’ new contract with Flyers sign of rising salaries in NHL
From the league’s inception until the 1960s, almost all players in the NHL were Canadian. Players cannot enter until three years have passed since their last professional game — currently tied with the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame for the shortest such time period of any major sport. Players, coaches, officials, and team builders who have had notable careers are eligible to be voted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. In addition to the regular season awards, the Conn Smythe Trophy is awarded annually to the most valuable player during the NHL’s Stanley Cup playoffs. The 1977 edition of the Montreal Canadiens (the second of four straight Stanley Cup champions), was named by ESPN as the second greatest sports team of all time.
Three NHL franchises facing the most pressure to win the Stanley Cup in 2027
The ninth overall pick in 2019 and the Calder Trophy runner-up as a rookie, he posted back-to-back 60-point seasons in Anaheim before injuries and a fractured relationship with the Ducks’ front office derailed best Australian bookmakers the early part of his career. Perhaps after failing to get to the dance with Detroit, he can help his childhood team, which ideally is a better playoff bet than Chicago, to make a Stanley Cup push in his latter career years. Kane, who was dealt to the Rangers in 2023, never got to play a game with the 2023 first-overall pick, Connor Bedard.
At the end of the regular season (the team that finishes with the most points in each division is crowned the division champion), and the league’s overall leader is awarded the Presidents’ Trophy. During the regular season, overtime is a five-minute, three-on-three sudden-death period, in which whoever scores a goal first wins the game. At the end of regulation time, the team with the most goals wins the game.

Shootout goals and saves are not tracked in hockey statistics; shootout statistics are tracked separately. The team with the most goals during the three-round shootout wins the game. Also, unlike minor penalties, major penalties must be served to their full completion, regardless of number of goals scored during the power play. The rule is unofficially nicknamed the “Martin Brodeur rule”; Brodeur at the time was one of the best goaltenders at getting behind the net to handle the puck. On January 12, the league and the Players’ Association signed a memorandum of understanding on the new deal, allowing teams to begin their training camps the next day, with a shortened 48-game season schedule that began on January 19.
A three-time champion of the Stanley Cup in 2010 — 2013, and 2015, he also received the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2013. His earlier seven-year contract consumed only 8.63% of the salary cap in 2016; he secured the Cup in the second-to-last season of that deal, earning $6.3 million per year. Currently (San Jose has $52.5 million available for transactions next summer), allowing them to comfortably include Celebrini. If the 21-year-old Swedish center accepts the five-year contract worth an average annual value of $18 million (he will surpass Kirill Kaprizov’s recently signed $17 million AAV with the Wild), becoming the highest-paid player in the NHL. Grushnikov will return to the team where his professional journey started (as he could not find a way to advance within Calgary’s ranks), hoping to establish a stronger presence in the KHL.
Penguins Announce ECHL Affiliation Changes
- Kane (traded to the Rangers in 2023), never had the opportunity to play alongside Connor Bedard, the first overall pick in 2023.
- The U.S. national rights were then held by NBC and OLN (later renamed Versus, then NBCSN) between the 2004–05 NHL lockout and 2021.
- Prosvetov posted high save percentages in the NAHL, USHL, and OHL before beginning his pro career in the Arizona Coyotes’ organization in 2019.

The New Jersey Devils sign Anthony Mantha to a two-year deal. Three potential trade candidates for the Nashville Predators. Jamie Drysdale (Zegras’ close friend and former Anaheim teammate), whose presence eased his transition to Philadelphia, remains unsigned and carries his own arbitration hearing scheduled for July 20. Extensions for Matvei Michkov and 2025 first-rounder Porter Martone loom over the next two summers — making cost certainty on Zegras a meaningful piece of the longer roster puzzle. Even after locking up Zegras, the Flyers retain ample flexibility, with roughly $30MM in projected space before this deal.
Gavin McKenna announced as Maple Leafs’ No. 1 overall draft pick
The annual Ice Hockey World Championships is held every May, at the same time as the Stanley Cup playoffs. No NHL club had played a Soviet or Russian-based club from the end of the Super Series in 1991 to 2008 when the New York Rangers faced Metallurg Magnitogorsk in the 2008 Victoria Cup. The first international club competition was held in 1976 (with eight NHL teams playing against the Soviet Championship League’s HC CSKA Moscow), and Krylya Sovetov Moscow. NHL Centre Ice in Canada and NHL Center Ice in the United States are the league’s subscription-based, out-of-market sports packages that offer access to out-of-market feeds of games through a cable or satellite television provider. ESPN’s deal includes 25 regular season games on ABC or ESPN, and 75 exclusive games streamed on ESPN+ and Hulu.
But the Senators legend, whose No. 11 hangs from the Canadian Tire Centre rafters — believes joining the Toronto Maple Leafs is a necessary step in his coaching career. Jim Tatti and Dave Feschuk are joined by Detroit Free Press Red Wings writer Helene St. James to discuss whether or not a General Manager change could entice Dylan Larkin to reconsider his trade request. TSN Hockey analyst Martin Biron shares his thoughts on the move and if it could change anything on the trade front for captain Dylan Larkin — who has a pending trade request. The Detroit Red Wings are mired in the NHL’s longest playoff drought — have their captain demanding a trade and are now searching for a new head of hockey operations deep into the off-season. TSN Hockey analyst Martin Biron shares his early power rankings for the Pacific — and if the Oilers are strong enough in goal to be considered contenders.
Who is the Maple Leafs’ ideal defensive partner for Darren Raddysh? The five best contracts signed in 2026 NHL free agency so far Can you name every player selected in the Vegas Golden Knights expansion draft? Three-time Stanley Cup champion Steve Yzerman stepping down as GM marks needed leadership change for Red Wings Merchandise sales were up 22 percent, and the number of unique visitors on the NHL.com website was up 17 percent during the playoffs after rising 29 percent in the regular season. The 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs saw the largest audience in the sport’s history “after a regular season that saw record-breaking business success, propelled largely by the NHL’s strategy of engaging fans through big events and robust digital offerings”.

Last month the Chicago-based Hoffmann Group was granted approval to acquire the Penguins (quite the step up from their only other venture into the hockey world), owning the Everblades. A Finn with a strong pedigree (Santala’s father Tommi had a long and successful professional career as a center across the NHL), Finland, Switzerland, and even a stint in the KHL. Coming along as a product of Kiekko-Espoo (Santala recorded 12 points in 25 games playing alongside skaters three years his senior), good for 12th best on the team.