The Chicago Blackhawks should have their top defenseman in the lineup when the regular season kicks off next week.

Duncan Keith has not played since he was replaced by Jay Bouwmeester on Team Canada's blue line at the World Cup of Hockey while he recovers from a knee injury, but expects to be in the lineup on Oct. 12 against the St. Louis Blues, he told NHL.com's Brian Hedger.

Before that happens, he will get his first taste of game action when the Blackhawks take on the Detroit Red Wings in a preseason tilt on Tuesday.

"I haven't played a game in a long time, like a lot of guys (have), so I'm just going to keep it simple and I'll just get that feeling back again," Keith said. "It's just one of those things now where it's going to be just focusing on maintaining my health and doing everything I can to make sure I'm feeling as good as I can to play."

Keith played 67 games for the Blackhawks last season, contributing nine goals and 43 points.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

For one more day, Barret Jackman is a member of the St. Louis Blues.

The defenseman signed a one-day contract with the club prior to officially announcing his retirement from professional hockey Tuesday.

Jackman, 35, appeared in 876 career NHL games, 803 of which were played with the Blues, who drafted him 17th overall in 1999.

Ultimately unable to help the Blues win a Stanley Cup, he did score two of the most memorable goals in recent Blues playoff history; in 2013, he scored the game-winning goal late in the third period in Game 2 of a first-round series against Los Angeles, and in 2014, he repeated the feat, ending Game 2 of the a first-round series with Chicago in the first overtime period.

Jackman - a rugged, stay-at-home defenseman - hit free agency following the 2014-15 season and signed with the Nashville Predators, but the final year of the deal was bought out this past offseason.

The 2003 Calder Trophy winner recorded 28 goals, 181 assists, and 1,026 penalty minutes over the course of his career, and was also a member of Canada's gold-medal winning World Championship squad in 2007.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Entering the season on a wave, Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby - the reigning Stanley Cup- and World Cup-winning captain - has overtaken Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks as the Hart Trophy favorite.

Here are the complete odds, which include Connor McDavid lurking not too far behind:

Odds courtesy Bodog.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Auston Matthews, the much-hyped No. 1 overall draft selection of the Toronto Maple Leafs, is a significant favorite to have the greatest impact season among rookies - at least in the eyes of Las Vegas.

Here are the opening odds for the Calder Trophy:

Odds courtesy Bodog.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

To see a list of all transactions throughout the summer, visit theScore's NHL Offseason Tracker

The Arizona Coyotes have signed Tobias Rieder to a two-year contract.

As per club policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed, but it's been reported the deal is worth $4.45 million, thereby carrying a cap hit of $2,225,000.

"We are very pleased to sign Tobi to a multi-year contract," said general manager John Chayka. "Tobi is a reliable, two-way forward who competes extremely hard. He had a great World Cup and we are excited to have him back."

Rieder, 23, recorded 14 goals and 23 assists in 82 games last season, and collected one assist in six games for Team Europe at the World Cup.

Originally drafted by Edmonton in the fourth round of the 2011 NHL Draft, Rieder was acquired by the Coyotes in 2013 in exchange for Kale Kessy.

The new deal ends an extended - and at times stalled - negotiation process between the two sides.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

theScore is previewing each team leading up to the 2016-17 season.

The Ottawa Senators missed the playoffs for the second time in three years last season, and after a relatively quiet summer on the acquisition front, the team is looking to new head coach Guy Boucher for a fresh systematic approach.

With a potent offense, and one of the league's top defenseman, the Senators are a threat in the middling Atlantic Division, if they can sort things out in their own zone.

Here's a look at Ottawa's projected depth chart for 2016-17:

Forwards

• Ottawa traded Mika Zibanejad to the New York Rangers for Brassard in the offseason.
• MacArthur's status remains in question after suffering another concussion in training camp.

Defense

• Ceci signed a two-year, $5.6-million contract in the offseason, following the most productive season of his young career.

Goalies

• After Hammond stole the show en route to a miraculous 2014 playoff berth, Anderson took the crease back, starting 60 games last season.

NHL Depth Charts

ANA | ARI | BOS | BUF | CGY
CAR | CHI | COL | CBS | DAL
DET | EDM | FLA | LA | MIN
MTL | NSH | NJD | NYI | NYR
PHI | PIT | OTT | STL | SJ
TB | TOR | VAN | WSH | WIN

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The puck has yet to drop on the 2016-17 regular season, but it's never too early to think about who will be selected with the first overall pick in June.

NHL Central Scouting has released its 'Players to Watch' list in advance of the 2017 Draft, with Nolan Patrick of the Western Hockey League's Brandon Wheat Kings standing out among the A-level players as the likely top pick.

"Patrick is as complete an NHL package as you are going to find," said Dan Marr, NHL director of Central Scouting. "From his pedigree, his skills, and assets, to his performance impact to date, he has everything any NHL team is looking for in a top prospect."

Patrick is one of 29 prospects to receive an "A" rating, including six WHL players, six from the Ontario Hockey League, three from the United States Hockey League, two from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, nine from Europe, two from the NCAA, and one from a U.S. high school.

The A-level players are considered potential first-round picks, while players with "B" ratings are considered possible second- or third-round choices, and those with "C" ratings are likely fourth-, fifth-, or sixth-round selections.

The full list can be viewed here.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Radko Gudas continues to escape NHL sanction.

The Philadelphia Flyers defender will apparently avoid further discipline for the five-minute boarding major and game misconduct he received after dangerously checking New York Rangers rookie Jimmy Vesey from behind Monday night, a source told Dave Isaac of the Courier-Post.

Related: Flyers' Gudas ejected for boarding Rangers' Vesey

While Gudas has previously felt the wrath of the NHL's Department of Player Safety, he's consistently been given the benefit of the doubt in similar circumstances.

The defenseman has been levied a major infraction in upwards of five incidents over the past season-plus, but just once has it resulted in suspension - a three-game ban for a straight elbow to the chin of Mika Zibanejad last December.

Player Safety told CSN's Tim Panaccio that Gudas did not "have time to adjust or avoid the hit once Vesey turns."

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Jakub Voracek appears primed for a bounce-back season.

The Philadelphia Flyers winger took matters onto his own stick in a preseason overtime session against the New York Rangers on Monday, fending off Ryan McDonagh before jamming the puck past MacKenzie Skapski.

Voracek scored only 11 goals last season, but could very well return to the 20-goal mark based on this kind of effort.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Jamie Benn is back.

The Dallas Stars captain - sidelined since July 14 following surgery to repair a core muscle - said he's ready to make his preseason debut Tuesday against Florida.

"I'm feeling pretty good and I'm going to test it out (Tuesday) night," Benn told Dan Rosen of NHL.com. "I'm actually pretty excited and looking forward to getting back out there with the guys. Hopefully it all goes well."

The recovery has taken longer than expected; Benn was originally set to be out six weeks, but was forced to miss the World Cup of Hockey to continue his rehabilitation.

"It was actually nice to sit out the first four preseason games and just get some good practice in to start to feel like I'm in game shape again," Benn added.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.