The Carolina Hurricanes signed general manager and executive vice president Ron Francis to a contract extension through the 2018-19 season, owner Peter Karmanos announced Tuesday.
Francis is entering his 11th season in Hurricanes management, and third as GM.
"Ron has rebuilt our organization the right way, stocking our team and system with young players who will help this franchise compete for the Stanley Cup year in and year out," Karmanos said. "I'm thrilled that he will continue to see the job through. The future is very bright for the Hurricanes in Carolina."
Carolina has built a promising pool of prospects that includes Noah Hanifin, Teuvo Teravainen, Sebastian Aho, and 2016 13th overall pick Jake Bean.
The 53-year-old Francis spent 16 seasons of his Hall of Fame playing career with the Hurricanes/Hartford Whalers franchise.
Gaudreau is a restricted free agent, and is due a major raise after leading the Flames with 78 points in 79 games last season. Negotiations have stalled, but general manager Brad Treliving, linemate Sean Monahan, and now captain Giordano have spoken out on the matter, iterating they want the dynamic winger around for the long haul.
Giordano knows first-hand the struggles of negotiating, as he left the Flames for the KHL in 2007 after failing to reach a deal as an RFA. He's confident Gaudreau won't have to resort to leaving, though.
"As a friend of Johnny's, as a teammate, I'm confident he'll be done," Giordano told Scott Cruickshank of the Calgary Herald. "There still is that time. Sometimes the back and forth (negotiating), it gets dragged out a little bit, but I'm sure it'll get done before the season starts.
"Obviously, as camp gets closer and closer, it'll get the ball rolling more and more."
Gaudreau is part of Team North America at the World Cup of Hockey starting Sept. 17, and previously said he won't add to the pressure by negotiating during the tournament.
"You know what? At the end of the day, there's always a little bit of anxiety," Girodano said. "We know what he is. Everyone knows what Johnny means to our team. We know what type of guy he is. Being optimistic, you hope as a teammate that it'll all work out."
Gaudreau is the only player on the Flames roster without a contract, and after Monahan signed a seven-year, $44.6-million extension in early August, it's easy to believe a new contract for the 23-year-old will take up a significant portion of the Flames' $8.5 million in cap space.
After skyrocketing up the draft rankings, Pierre-Luc Dubois was drafted third overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in June, and he now has his sights set on becoming the NHL's top rookie.
Dubois, a 6-foot-3 left winger, was the seventh-ranked North American skater on Central Scouting's midseason list, but thanks to a 99-point campaign with the QMJHL's Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, he entered the draft ranked No. 1.
Now, with training camp around the corner, Dubois believes if he can play his way onto Columbus' roster, he could win the Calder Trophy.
"We'll see, but, I mean, if I'm in Columbus, I might have a shot for that," Dubois told Mike Morreale of NHL.com. "It's a different level, but if I am in there I think I have a good shot at it. When you are in (the NHL) you don't really think about it. You just want to play and help your team win. If you win an award like that, it is an honor."
Columbus surprised many by selecting Dubois with the third pick, as Jesse Puljujarvi - who wound up being taken one later - was slotted in behind Auston Matthews (No. 1) and Patrik Laine (No. 2) for much of the season.
While no longer the dominant hockey nation it once was, featuring the likes of Jaromir Jagr, Patrick Elias, and Hall of Famer Dominik Hasek, there is no denying that the Czech Republic still brings skill to the international table.
The Czech Republic has put together an interesting mix of talent young and old as its World Cup entry, from Ales Hemsky of the Dallas Stars to Tomas Hertl of the San Jose Sharks. But, with no dominant scorer among the group, team unity will be a major requirement as the Czechs take on a scoring-by-committee approach to find success at the tournament.
With the World Cup kicking off Sept. 17, we've highlighted three Czech players worth keeping an eye on.
Voracek, 27, had a down season last year, as his goal totals reduced by half, while his production dropped to 55 points, a three-year low, and down from a career-high 81 points in the previous campaign. A strong performance at the World Cup would not only serve the Czech team well, but would be a nice ramp up for Voracek heading into Philadelphia's training camp come October.
Vladimir Sobotka
Vladimir Sobotka has spent the past two seasons with Omsk of the KHL. Over that time, the versatile pivot has scored 28 goals and 44 assists, good for 72 points in 97 games.
The 29-year-old has been a frequent participant with the Czech at international tournaments, most recently at the the 2015 World Championship, where he scored four times. At the previous year's tournament, Sobotka notched two goals and four assists through nine games, finishing third in team scoring.
Should Sobotka have a strong showing at the World Cup, it may influence whether he returns to the NHL. Despite the will-he-or-won't-he saga involving his potential return to the St. Louis Blues, the Blues hold his rights for one season, before he can become an unrestricted free agent.
Petr Mrazek
All eyes will be on Petr Mrazek, the 24-year-old netminder who stole the crease in Detroit last year from veteran keeper Jimmy Howard.
In just his second full-time season, Mrazek appeared in 54 games, posting a 27-16-6 record. He was particularly strong in the first half of the season, and was a major reason why the Red Wings' playoff streak reached 25 straight seasons.
At the World Cup, Mrazek is the likely starter for the Czech Republic ahead of Winnipeg's Ondrej Pavelec and Philadelphia's Michal Neuvirth. He'll need to be on his toes too, as the Czech defense leaves much to be desired. Headlined by the likes of Arizona's Zbynek Michalek and Toronto's Roman Polak, there is no Top 4 defender among the group, let alone a top pairing blue-liner. Mrazek will surely have his work cut out for him.
Torres, 34, last played in the NHL in the 2013-14 season with the San Jose Sharks. He missed the entire 2014-15 campaign with a knee injury.
The agitating winger was then handed a 41-game ban following a vicious head check to Anaheim's Jakob Silfverberg in a preseason game last year. It marked the longest suspension in league history.
Upon his return, Torres suited up for six games with the Sharks' AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda, before being dealt to the Toronto Maple Leafs in February as part of a salary cap move to acquire defenseman Roman Polak.
Speaking with TSN 1200 Radio on Monday, Phaneuf noted many positives in the Senators' offseason makeover.
Phaneuf, 31, highlighted the team's veteran additions, particularly center Derick Brassard.
"I’m very optimistic. I think you look at the moves that (general manager) Pierre (Dorion) made," Phaneuf said. "He brings in Brassard. Obviously Mika (Zibanejad) was a very talented young player, but you bring in Brassard.
"He’s a little bit older. A little bit more experienced. He produces. Look at the numbers that he puts up. So that was a very big addition."
Brassard, 28, scored 27 goals and 31 assists last season while with the New York Rangers.
Meanwhile, Phaneuf also highlighted the Senators' addition of experienced pivot Chris Kelly. The 35-year-old previously spent six seasons with the club, most recently in 2011.
"(Kelly) is an experienced guy. He’s won. He’s very good defensively. He can kill penalties. So we definitely had a real good summer in additions," Phaneuf added.
The big blue-liner spoke glowingly of Ottawa's new head coach, Guy Boucher.
"He loves the game. He’s very detailed in his systems and his structure of the way that he has his teams play," Phaneuf said. "He’s going to come in for day 1 of camp and that’s what he’s going to demand. So it’s our job to learn those systems and play to his structure."
Phaneuf is familiar with making such adjustments. After all, just last season he was dealt to Ottawa from the rival Toronto Maple Leafs.
"It was a real good transition for me, but I’m excited about having a full season in Ottawa and starting right from day 1 from training camp," Phaneuf said.
"When you come in and you get traded midseason, there’s a lot that happens. You’re moving your house. You’re moving everything into a new city, so there’s a lot of things that are new to you."
Phaneuf finished last season with 32 points in 71 games, tallying eight points in 20 games with the Senators.
A leg injury sustained in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final cut Ben Bishop's postseason short, and the World Cup of Hockey is having the same effect on his offseason, but the Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender is ready to go.
"I've been doing rehab all summer, and I'm stronger this summer than I was last summer going into camp as far as test results. That's a good thing."
Bishop will be representing Team USA in September's tournament, beginning with an exhibition game Sept. 9 versus Team Canada in Columbus, quite a stiffer test than the exhibition games he's used to.
"It's going to be a little different than NHL exhibition games," Bishop said.
"Canada-U.S.? I don't think that's going to be an ease-in process. Exhibition games are going to be a little more intense, especially for goalies who like to slowly get into it. My first game could be against Team Canada, but after practicing for a week and some intrasquad scrimmages, I'm sure I'll be ready."
A leg injury sustained in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final cut Ben Bishop's postseason short, and the World Cup of Hockey is having the same effect on his offseason, but the Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender is ready to go.
"I've been doing rehab all summer, and I'm stronger this summer than I was last summer going into camp as far as test results. That's a good thing."
Bishop will be representing Team USA in September's tournament, beginning with an exhibition game Sept. 9 versus Team Canada in Columbus, quite a stiffer test than the exhibition games he's used to.
"It's going to be a little different than NHL exhibition games," Bishop said.
"Canada-U.S.? I don't think that's going to be an ease-in process. Exhibition games are going to be a little more intense, especially for goalies who like to slowly get into it. My first game could be against Team Canada, but after practicing for a week and some intrasquad scrimmages, I'm sure I'll be ready."
