Ryan Johansen signed the biggest deal ever handed out by the Nashville Predators on Friday, inking a $64-million contract to spend the next eight seasons in Smashville - a fact that obviously has the soon-to-be 25-year-old fired up.

Related: Poll: Did the Predators overpay Ryan Johansen?

"This is probably one of the best days of my life right now," said Johansen, according to Robby Stanley of NHL.com. "I'm just so thankful for my family and my brother and friends. They've done everything they can to guide me in the right direction and teach me and learn from."

With Johansen's future now secure with Predators, Nashville and general manager David Poile fill a major need up the middle - a position that is arguably the club's biggest weakness.

"That's why I was brought here, to be a No. 1 center," Johansen said. "That was my motivation going into the playoffs and throughout the series and putting ourselves in a position to play in the playoffs."

Despite only spending a season and a half in Nashville, Johansen was always clear on where he wanted to be.

"This is where I belong. This is where I want to play. There's no better staff, management, team, group of guys, friends, place to live, city, fans, there's a whole list. There's no better place to be right now."

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The Dallas Stars will host the 2018 NHL Draft, the team announced Saturday.

The 2018 draft will mark the first time in Stars franchise history that the club will host the event, and coincides with Dallas' 25th anniversary in the league.

"Players born in 2000 will be the focus of the first draft of our second century,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said. "Tomorrow's NHL stars will skate into the spotlight when the 2018 NHL Draft brings the NHL family together at American Airlines Center, providing another highlight for the Dallas Stars' 25th anniversary celebration."

This year's draft was hosted by the Chicago Blackhawks, where forward Nico Hischier was drafted first overall by the New Jersey Devils.

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Despite missing half of the 2016-17 regular season and all of the playoffs with a severe neck injury and subsequent surgery, Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang is optimistic about playing next campaign.

Related: Watch: Terrell Owens breaks Kris Letang's ankles during training

So much so, in fact, the oft-injured rearguard expects to be ready for training camp.

"Obviously, I've had a lot of time to rehab it and get stronger and make sure I was all healed up," Letang said, according to Kaitlyn Kaminski of NHL.com. "It's been pretty good and we're on a path of starting training camp and being fully healthy."

Over the course of Letang's 11-year career, the 30-year-old blue-liner has faced numerous serious ailments, including three concussions, a stroke, and multiple broken bones.

However, Letang's propensity to spend time in the press box clearly hasn't slowed the Penguins, as Pittsburgh looks to become the first team to three-peat as champions since the 1980-82 New York Islanders.

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Bringing on two players who finished last season with a combined goal total of 18 doesn't usually instill a ton of confidence in the team adding those players.

But, for Minnesota Wild head coach Bruce Boudreau, that's exactly the case with newly added forwards Marcus Foligno and Tyler Ennis, who were both acquired via trade with the Buffalo Sabres last month.

Related: Boudreau: 3 unsigned RFAs are 'glue that's going to hold' Wild together

"I think people are going to love Marcus Foligno. He hits a ton. I think he can score. … I think he's going to be a fan favorite and people here are going to love him," Boudreau told Chad Graff of the Twin Cities Pioneer Press.

Despite being hampered by injuries throughout his time in the NHL - Ennis has played a full 82-game season only once - Boudreau is especially hyped about the addition of the diminutive centerman.

"Tyler Ennis, I've seen and talked to and met. I don't want to put pressure on him, but three years ago, he was a great player in this league," said Boudreau. " ... I'm very excited about having him."

"In our top-nine forwards, I think we're as strong as anybody in the league."

With three key forwards still unsigned, including Foligno and last year's point leader Mikael Granlund, Boudreau's confidence surrounding his forward group seems almost foolhardy. Especially when you consider the fact the Wild failed to produce a single 30-goal scorer a season ago.

Boudreau will be looking to qualify for the postseason for a second straight season as Minnesota bench boss, while the Wild as a franchise have made the playoffs every year since 2013.

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With training camp slowly but surely approaching, four NHL teams remain without captains.

Here's a look at the top candidate to lead each team:

Arizona Coyotes - Oliver Ekman-Larsson

Shane Doan was uncermoniously let loose by the Coyotes back in June, opening the door for someone other than the former face of the franchise to don the "C" for the first time since 2003.

Enter Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who was drafted sixth overall in 2009 and now stands as the team's longest-serving player.

He also happens to be an elite defenseman, and general manager John Chayka has touted Ekman-Larsson as the one who will carry the team moving forward.

The decision will ultimately be up to new head coach Rick Tocchet and his staff, but Ekman-Larsson was reported to be in line for the captaincy prior to his hiring.

Carolina Hurricanes - Jordan Staal

Four players served as alternate captains for the Carolina Hurricanes last season: defenseman Justin Faulk, and forwards Victor Rask, Jeff Skinner and Jordan Staal.

The latter, of course, is the brother of former Carolina captain Eric Staal, and is best suited to take up that mantle beginning this season.

The 27-year-old, two-way center is under contract through to the end of the 2022-23 season, boasts a wealth of knowledge and experience, and has won a Stanley Cup as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins (2009).

The Hurricanes are an up-and-coming team, and, if all goes according to plan for GM Ron Francis, Jordan could be the second Staal to accept the Cup from commissioner Gary Bettman.

Toronto Maple Leafs - Auston Matthews

The Maple Leafs have been without a captain since Dion Phaneuf was traded to Ottawa in 2016. Like the Hurricanes, Toronto assigned an "A" to four players last season: forwards Tyler Bozak and Leo Komarov, and defensemen Matt Hunwick and Morgan Rielly.

Rielly may have had the inside track on being named captain of the historic franchise were it not for Toronto's good fortune of winning the 2016 NHL Draft lottery and laying claim to Auston Matthews.

The Scottsdale, Ariz., native dominated in his rookie season, scoring 40 goals and winning the Calder Trophy. Matthews has also been embraced by the fan base, and - with all due respect to fellow rookie phenoms William Nylander and Mitch Marner - it is he for whom the team will be built around.

Matthews will turn 20 prior to the start of the regular season, but he'd still be one of the youngest captains in NHL history. His cool demeanor and ability to get the job done suggests he's up to the task.

Vegas Golden Knights - James Neal

Marc-Andre Fleury is being marketed hard by the expansion Golden Knights, but goalies are prohibited from serving as official captains during games, so he can be scratched from the list of candidates.

According to team insider Gary Lawless, GM George McPhee may have selected the future captain with the 34th pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, namely defenseman Nic Hague.

"I think Hague is going to be the Captain of the Vegas Golden Knights at some point in time," Lawless said on the SinBin.vegas podcast. "The way he talks, the way he commands the players around him, his stature. He was the OHL Scholastic Player of the Year last year. He is a really impressive young man."

Hague is a few years away yet, and Vegas could choose to rotate alternates until a clear leader emerges, but they'll probably want to sell some jerseys with the "C" right off the bat.

James Neal has one year remaining on his contract, but was a big get for the Golden Knights in the expansion draft, and served as an alternate with the Nashville Predators over the past few seasons.

He's also one of Vegas' top offensive options, helped the Preds reach the 2017 Cup Final, and is the top candidate on a roster that will remain very much in flux over the next few years.

(Photos courtesy: Action Images)

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Arizona Coyotes general manager John Chayka has been one of the busier NHL executives this summer, adding to his roster at almost every position.

The key to Arizona's future success, however, lies with a player that has spent his entire career in a Coyotes uniform - assistant captain and No. 1 defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson.

Related: Tocchet hiring cements Coyotes as early offseason winners

"It's a bit of a reboot here but I think we've got a good core, a young nucleus led by Oliver Ekman-Larsson," Chayka told NHL Tonight on Friday. "He's going to carry us. You only go as far as your top players can bring you."

In a few short months, the youngest-ever GM in North American sports history has remade the identity of a hockey club that has languished at the bottom of the NHL standings for the past five seasons.

Arguably, the most important piece to Chayka's offseason plan was the acquisition of three-time Cup champion Niklas Hjalmarsson from the Chicago Blackhawks. The 30-year-old veteran will be counted on to play top minutes with fellow Swede Ekman-Larsson.

"Nik, for us, is a guy that comes in and can be that top-pairing guy with Oliver, and like I said, we are going to go as far he's able to bring us and he's going to kind of push this thing forward," Chayka said.

"So, he needs support, he needs help, and we think Nik can do that for him."

At 26 years old, Ekman-Larsson is one of the top offensive rearguards in the game - registering 30-or-more points in five of his seven seasons in the league - and will be counted on to lead a young Coyotes club looking to make the playoffs for the first time since 2012.

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Calgary Flames defenseman Dougie Hamilton developed hockey's alternative to the latest social media craze.

For those unfamiliar with the Drive-By Dunk Challenge, it involves cruising around unsuspecting neighborhoods with a ball at the ready in the passenger seat. The fad has caught on among NBA players willing to give fans a free show.

Hamilton issued a challenge to teammates Johnny Gaudreau, Sam Bennett, Matthew Tkachuk, Curtis Lazar, and brother Freddie Hamilton. None of them had accepted his offer as of Saturday morning.

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