Coming off his second reconstructive knee surgery in as many years, 39-year-old Joe Thornton isn't concerned with any ill effects as he gears up for his 14th season with the San Jose Sharks.

Thornton missed the final 35 games of the regular season and all of the Sharks' playoff run after tearing his ACL and MCL in his right knee in January, nine months after doing the same to his left. Back-to-back injuries of such severity could spell doom for anyone's career, but Thornton, a future Hall of Famer who's never been particularly fleet of foot, is expecting to be the same player he's always been once back in uniform.

"They've said that since I've been 16 years old, and I think I've had a pretty good career," Thornton told Kevin Kurz of The Athletic when asked about his speed.

"I think when I'm out there I dictate the play. It doesn't matter who I play against, I usually dictate the play. I've had that criticism for 22 years. I think I've kept up pretty good."

Thornton managed to record 36 points in 47 games last season and signed a one-year contract worth a reported $5 million in July. He's expected to be in the lineup when San Jose's season opens Oct. 3 versus the Anaheim Ducks and is just seven games shy of reaching the 1,500 mark for his career.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The group hoping to bring an NHL team to Seattle has made further progress.

Oak View Group and Seattle mayor Jenny Durkan announced three new agreements relating to the prospective team's arena deal and revealed several new investors in the potential franchise Wednesday.

A development agreement for the new arena, a long-term lease agreement, and an integration agreement were transmitted by the mayor and introduced to the Seattle City Council for consideration.

The group has already received approval from the city to redevelop KeyArena, the home of the WNBA's Seattle Storm and former home of the NBA's SuperSonics.

Related: Seattle hockey CEO says prospective franchise will make NHL pitch this fall

The new investors are David and Jeff Wright (whose family owns the Space Needle and other local landmarks), Seattle Sounders majority owner Adrian Hanauer, Christoper and Ted Ackerley (sons of former Sonics owner Barry Ackerley), Amazon Web Services CEO Andy Jassy, and Jay Deutsch, the CEO and co-founder of Seattle-based premium merchandise agency BDA.

David Wright will serve as vice chairman of Seattle Hockey Partners, the formal name of the alliance that includes Oak View Group and all of its investors in the Seattle NHL effort.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The group hoping to bring an NHL team to Seattle has made further progress.

Oak View Group and Seattle mayor Jenny Durkan announced three new agreements relating to the prospective team's arena deal and revealed several new investors in the potential franchise Wednesday.

A development agreement for the new arena, a long-term lease agreement, and an integration agreement were transmitted by the mayor and introduced to the Seattle City Council for consideration.

The group has already received approval from the city to redevelop KeyArena, the home of the WNBA's Seattle Storm and former home of the NBA's SuperSonics.

Related: Seattle hockey CEO says prospective franchise will make NHL pitch this fall

The new investors are David and Jeff Wright (whose family owns the Space Needle and other local landmarks), Seattle Sounders majority owner Adrian Hanauer, Christoper and Ted Ackerley (sons of former Sonics owner Barry Ackerley), Amazon Web Services CEO Andy Jassy, and Jay Deutsch, the CEO and co-founder of Seattle-based premium merchandise agency BDA.

David Wright will serve as vice chairman of Seattle Hockey Partners, the formal name of the alliance that includes Oak View Group and all of its investors in the Seattle NHL effort.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Edmonton Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse won't be participating in the club's upcoming training camp without some financial security.

Nurse, the only Oilers player currently without a contract, recently said he's optimistic a deal will get done before camp opens in mid-September, but he confirmed Wednesday he won't be attending if he remains a restricted free agent.

"No, I wouldn't come to camp without a contract, but hopefully we get something done before camp so I can be out there (on the) first day. That's the goal," Nurse told reporters, via Sportsnet.

Nurse is coming off the final year of his entry-level contract and is one of three prominent RFA defenseman across the league in need of a new deal, along with Shea Theodore of the Vegas Golden Knights and Josh Morrissey of the Winnipeg Jets.

The Oilers have just under $4 million available in cap space to work out a new pact with Nurse, per Cap Friendly. The 23-year-old is coming off his most productive season at the NHL level, suiting up in all 82 games while registering 26 points and logging over 22 minutes per contest.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Toronto Maple Leafs will apparently not have a captain to begin the 2018-19 campaign.

"Not from the outset, I don't think," Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas told TSN's Bob McKenzie in an interview posted Wednesday.

"I want to get into a day to day with these people and see who's best suited to handle that, if we do determine that we need somebody to handle that (and) if we feel we have a void in leadership because we don't have a formal captain, then I think it's something we can address," he said.

The GM added that in studying teams, he found it's best to be patient with naming a captain, rather than rushing a decision and having to correct it.

Auston Matthews recently said he'd be ready to wear the 'C' if called upon but also acknowledged new teammate John Tavares' experience in the role with the New York Islanders.

The Leafs haven't had a captain since Dion Phaneuf was traded to the Ottawa Senators in February 2016.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

One week after Dallas Stars forward Tyler Seguin voiced his displeasure about not having a contract beyond 2018-19, it appears things are picking up.

The Stars and Seguin's camp had more significant discussions this past weekend about a potential contract extension, a source told The Athletic's Sean Shapiro.

The latest news comes after Seguin told reporters, including theScore's John Matisz, that there hadn't been much in the way of contract talks during the current offseason.

The 26-year-old will enter the 2018-19 campaign in the final season of his six-year, $34.5-million contract and is set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

Seguin is coming off his fifth consecutive 70-plus-point season in which he hit the 40-goal plateau for the first time. Since the 2013-14 season, he's tied with Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby for the second-most goals in the league.

In the past, Seguin has spoken about his desire to remain with the Stars, so perhaps the latest news will lead to an extension before he hits free agency.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Max Pacioretty appears to have set a deadline on his contract negotiations.

The Montreal Canadiens forward will hold off all talks about a new deal once the regular season begins, sources told Sportsnet's Eric Engels on Wednesday.

Pacioretty, who is a pending unrestricted free agent, will abstain from negotiations not just with the Canadiens, but any other team, a source close to the player's camp told Engels, presumably taking into account the possibility of a trade.

He's entering the final campaign of the six-year, $27-million pact he inked with Montreal in 2012.

The Canadiens reportedly came close to trading Pacioretty at the draft, and general manager Marc Bergevin reportedly told the winger in July that the club would not negotiate an extension with him and was attempting to deal him as soon as possible.

Last week, Pacioretty told reporters at his charity golf tournament that there were no extension talks taking place with the Canadiens at the time.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Cody Franson became the latest former NHLer to land at Avangard Omsk on Wednesday.

The defenseman agreed to a two-year contract with the KHL club, the league announced.

Franson split last season between the Chicago Blackhawks and their AHL affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs, contributing seven points in 23 NHL games and racking up 28 points in 37 AHL regular-season contests.

He added six goals and 13 points in 13 playoff games for the IceHogs in the spring, helping them reach the Western Conference Final.

The 31-year-old played for the Blackhawks, Sabres, Predators, and Maple Leafs over parts of the last nine seasons.

He joins forward Kris Versteeg and defenseman Alexei Emelin, who signed deals of their own with Avangard within the last week. The team also includes former NHL forwards David Desharnais and Max Talbot.

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.