On the eve of the Anaheim Ducks' first game of the 2017-18 season, the team has signed defenseman Josh Manson to a four-year contract extension, with Manson himself announcing the news on the Ducks' Twitter account.

The contract will pay Manson $4.1 million per season for a total of $16.4 million, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.

Manson's extension will kick in at the conclusion of this season and will keep the 25-year-old with the club through the 2021-22 campaign.

Last season, the 2011 sixth-round pick played a career-high 82 games while setting a career high with five goals and 17 points. He also finished second on the team with 227 hits and sixth with 79 blocked shots.

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Jaromir Jagr is a Calgary Flame.

The legendary forward met the media for the first time as a member of his new team Wednesday, moments after the club confirmed his one-year, $1-million contract.

The 45-year-old said he's leaning toward retiring after one last go-round.

"Ninety-nine percent (chance) this will be my last season," Jagr told reporters, according to Sportsnet's Roger Millions.

When asked about approaching Gordie Howe's all-time games played record, Jagr downplayed it by reminding reporters that he left the NHL for the KHL earlier in his career.

"I never thought about the record or I never would have gone back to Russia," he said, according to Sportsnet's Eric Francis.

As for his readiness for this season, the ageless winger said he won't rush himself into game action, making it clear he wants to get a few practices in before taking a spot in the lineup, according to Sportsnet 960 The FAN's Pat Steinberg.

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Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander is apparently letting his play do the talking in 2017-18, as he told Sportsnet's Chris Johnston he doesn't plan to negotiate a contract extension during the season.

Nylander has one year left on his entry-level contract before hitting restricted free agency. He became eligible to sign a new deal on July 1.

For now, Nylander's focus is on the present, as he'll try to build off a sterling rookie campaign in which he potted 22 goals and 39 assists, helping the Maple Leafs make the playoffs.

The eighth overall pick in 2014 has recently seen a few of his draft mates - namely David Pastrnak (25th overall) and Nikolaj Ehlers (ninth overall) - sign long-term extensions.

Both players serve as good comparisons to what Nylander could be offered.

Nylander, of course, can stake his claim to earn more than his peers if he improves this season. And based on the way he looked alongside linemate Auston Matthews in the preseason (seven points in four games), waiting it out could be the best course of action for him to cash in.

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Daniel Winnik has translated a camp tryout into a full-time gig, signing a one-year, $660,000 deal with the Minnesota Wild on Wednesday.

Winnik joined the Wild on a professional tryout offer last month. His showing in the preseason, in which he tallied one point in five games, was enough to earn a spot with the team.

Winnik, 32, recorded 25 points in 72 games with the Washington Capitals last season.

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The Arizona Coyotes are not rushing to name a new captain.

Instead, defensemen Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Niklas Hjalmarsson will serve as alternate captains to begin the 2017-18 NHL season, while centers Derek Stepan and Brad Richardson, as well as defenseman Alex Goligoski, will serve as a third alternate on a rotating basis.

"After numerous discussions and thorough evaluation during training camp, (head coach) Rick (Tocchet) and I have decided that it's best to go with five alternate captains to start the season," general manager John Chayka announced Wednesday.

"With a new head coach and several new players joining the organization, this will be a transition year as far as leadership is concerned. Fortunately, we have a very strong leadership group in our dressing room and collectively, we're confident that these players will do an excellent job leading our team on and off the ice."

The Coyotes are a young squad, and Tocchet - who will decide game-by-game who wears the third "A" - will rely on his veterans to provide guidance in the room and on the ice.

"This is a great opportunity for Oliver, Nik, Derek, Brad, and Alex to step up and demonstrate their leadership abilities," Tocchet said. "We need everyone in our room to lead but these five players are all great people and have the necessary NHL experience to collectively guide our team. I'm excited for them and the challenge ahead."

The captaincy was left vacant when Arizona announced it would not re-sign longtime leader Shane Doan.

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Former NHL forward Ray Whitney has accepted a role with the Department of Player Safety, the league announced Wednesday.

Whitney's hiring comes less than one month after former NHL enforcer George Parros was selected to lead the department, taking over for Stephane Quintal.

Whitney, 45, spent 21 seasons in the NHL before retiring in 2014.

A Stanley Cup champion with the Carolina Hurricanes, he finished his career with 1,064 points and 465 penalty minutes in 1,330 games.

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To celebrate the start of the 2017-18 regular season, the NHL and Twitter have teamed up to create official hashtag-triggered emojis for all 31 teams.

Fans can add team logos to their tweets by using the following hashtags:

Here they are in action:

Happy tweeting, hockey fans!

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Alex Chiasson signed a one-year, $660,000 contract with the Washington Capitals following a successful training camp tryout.

The deal is one-way in nature.

The winger registered 12 goals (11 at even strength) and 12 assists in 81 games with the Calgary Flames last season.

Chiasson was drafted 38th overall by Dallas in 2009, and has totaled 106 points (50 goals, 56 assists) in 320 career NHL games with the Stars, Ottawa Senators, and Flames.

As a reminder, Chiasson was included in a package sent to the Senators in the Jason Spezza trade back in 2014.

He'll now be counted on to provide scoring depth for a Capitals team looking to keep its Stanley Cup window wide open.

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The bar has been set.

In order for the Winnipeg Jets to succeed this season, the team simply needs to get "average goaltending" out of Connor Hellebuyck and new addition Steve Mason, head coach Paul Maurice told TSN.

"In order for them to have that, a couple of things got to happen, maybe three," Maurice added. "We've got to stay out of the penalty box. When we can't stay out of the penalty box, we've got to do a much better job killing penalties."

Maurice may be on to something. Hellebuyck, alongside Michael Hutchinson, allowed 256 goals last season, fourth most in the league. Although it didn't seem to matter how many skaters were on the ice, as Winnipeg allowed the fourth-most goals when on the penalty kill, which was only marginally better than its even-strength rank.

"In our overall five-on-five game, just an adherence to defense and a respect for the defensive part of the game," Maurice added. "Not that we don't have it, but when you're chasing goals and you're chasing the game an awful lot, and you need your goaltender to make that save and you don't get it, then that becomes who you are."

The team hopes its signing of Mason - who spent parts of the past five seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers - can bring a little more stability between the pipes.

"If they (the goalies) can start us at average, we've got to do everything we can to help our goaltenders to get us to the middle of the pack, and then we'll push from there," Maurice added.

Whether or not the change in goal will help the high-flying Jets will be answered soon enough. The team kicks off its season Wednesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs, with Mason getting the nod as the starter.

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Bank on the Edmonton Oilers and Pittsburgh Penguins facing off in the 2018 Stanley Cup Final.

This according to oddsmakers, who've tabbed teams respectively captained by Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby as Cup co-favorites as of opening day.

Also of note, the Dallas Stars have gone from a non-playoff team to having the fourth-best odds, while the Los Angeles Kings also experienced a bump after last season's failure. On the flip side, oddsmakers are not high on the Ottawa Senators, who were a goal away from the Cup Final last spring.

Oh, and the expansion Vegas Golden Knights have higher odds than five other teams, for those feeling especially lucky.

(Odds courtesy: Bodog)

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