The Pittsburgh Penguins have signed restricted free agent forward Teddy Blueger to a two-year contract worth $2.2 million per season, the team announced Wednesday.

Blueger posted a career-best 0.51 points per game last campaign while averaging nearly 15 minutes across 43 contests. However, the 26-year-old is valued more for his defensive prowess.

"Teddy has proven to be a versatile, two-way center, as well as a fixture on the penalty kill," said general manager Ron Hextall. "He is a valuable player for our team."

Blueger was the Penguins' second-round pick in 2012, and he's appeared in 140 games with Pittsburgh since.

Although he's earned a new deal, the Penguins will likely expose Blueger in the upcoming expansion draft due to the team having a surplus of high-quality forwards ahead of him on its depth chart.

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Boston Bruins defenseman Kevan Miller announced his retirement on Wednesday at the age of 33.

The physical blue-liner suffered numerous injuries over the years, including two broken kneecaps that caused him to miss the entire 2019-20 campaign. He was also hospitalized after suffering a concussion in the 2021 playoffs.

Signed as an undrafted free agent, the Los Angeles, California, native finishes his NHL career with 71 points in 352 games spanned across seven seasons.

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Hockey Hall of Famer Sergei Fedorov is taking his talents behind the bench.

The 51-year-old is taking over as head coach of the KHL's CSKA Moscow, the league announced Wednesday.

Federov has been the team's general manager since 2012-13.

The 6-foot-2, two-way center was one of his generation's best players, winning three Stanley Cups, two Selke Trophies, a Hart Trophy, three World Championship gold medals, and a world junior gold medal. His best years came with the Detroit Red Wings, but he also enjoyed stints with the then-Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, the Columbus Blue Jackets, and the Washington Capitals.

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The Colorado Avalanche and captain Gabriel Landeskog are struggling to find common ground in contract negotiations with free agency nearing, TSN's Darren Dreger reported during Tuesday's edition of "Insider Trading."

"I'm told the two sides are not even close in their negotiations to extend Landeskog," Dreger said. "The position of the Colorado Avalanche is going to have to change significantly, according to sources, or absolutely Landeskog will go to market."

Dreger added, "(It's) early in the process, there's no doubt about that, but the position on both sides doesn't look very strong right now."

Landeskog is set for unrestricted free agency come July 28 if he doesn't strike a deal with Colorado, which drafted him second overall in 2011.

The Avalanche have a projected $25 million in cap space this summer, according to Cap Friendly, but also need to strike new deals with goaltender Philipp Grubauer and star defenseman Cale Makar. Additionally, perennial Hart Trophy nominee Nathan MacKinnon is eligible for a contract extension after the 2021-22 season.

The St. Louis Blues are reportedly preparing a "full pitch effort" to sign Landeskog if he hits the open market.

The 28-year-old is bound to have plenty of suitors, as he led all impending UFA forwards with 52 points in 2021. Landeskog also has 45 points in 49 career playoff games and plays a physical brand of hockey that many general managers and coaches covet.

Landeskog's last contract paid him $5.57 million per season.

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Former NHL defenseman Brent Sopel said Tuesday that most of his Chicago Blackhawks teammates were aware of sexual assault allegations against former video coach Brad Aldrich during the team's 2010 Stanley Cup run.

An unnamed former Chicago player sued the Blackhawks in May, alleging that Aldrich sexually assaulted the player and a teammate around the time of the 2010 Western Conference Final. Former Blackhawks assistant coach John Torchetti said in June that team management met at the time to discuss the matter but never brought it to police.

Sopel said players discussed the topic in the dressing room during the playoff run that culminated in the first of three Blackhawks championships in six seasons.

"I'd say pretty much every player said, 'Holy shit' and was shocked by it," Sopel told TSN's Rick Westhead. "We were all in the same dressing room. It was something that was discussed for at least two or three days. (Then-head coach Joel) Quenneville was in the same office as (Aldrich). We heard about it."

Chicago captain Jonathan Toews said in June he was "annoyed" after an anonymous former Blackhawks player told The Athletic that "every single guy on the team knew" of the allegations. Toews added that he didn't believe the statement was accurate.

Quenneville, now the head coach of the Florida Panthers, told Westhead on Tuesday he learned of the allegations this summer.

The Blackhawks announced following Torchetti's statements that they've hired a former federal prosecutor to lead a team-financed, independent review of the matter.

Sopel is calling on those who were with the team at the time to speak truthfully about the allegations.

"I understand doing the right thing is hard," he said. "A lot of those guys who were on the 2009-10 team are still with the Blackhawks getting paid, and they're either still playing or in broadcasting or coaching, management, or scouting, or being an ambassador for the team. That's why they're not saying anything.

"Guys want to protect their jobs. But they should still be doing the right thing and telling the truth publicly about what happened."

Sopel played three seasons with the Blackhawks, the last being the 2010 championship campaign. He also spent time with the Vancouver Canucks, Los Angeles Kings, New York Islanders, Montreal Canadiens, and Atlanta Thrashers over a 12-year NHL career.

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The Minnesota Wild are buying out defenseman Ryan Suter and forward Zach Parise, the team announced Tuesday.

The pair signed matching 13-year, $98-million contracts as free agents in 2012. The buyout for each player will go as follows, per CapFriendly:

Combining the two buyouts, the Wild will receive significant cap savings for the 2021-22 season but not much afterward.

The move also frees up two protection spots for the expansion draft. Both players had to be protected by Minnesota unless they waived the full no-movement clauses in their contracts.

Suter registered three goals and 16 assists in 56 games this campaign. His average ice time of 22:11 was his lowest by over two minutes since joining the Wild.

Parise was a healthy scratch at times this season and tallied just seven goals and 11 assists in 45 contests. His 0.40 points per game tied his career-low mark.

Both players still drove offense this past year in their age-36 seasons. However, Parise - and to a lesser extent, Suter - didn't post strong defensive metrics.

Minnesota missed the postseason just once in nine campaigns during the Suter-Parise era, but it never made it out of the second round.

Suter finishes his Wild career ranked second in franchise history in assists (314) and fourth in games played (656) and points (369). Parise ranks third in goals (199) and points (400) and seventh in games played (558).

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The Montreal Canadiens officially named Dominique Ducharme the 31st head coach in the team's history Tuesday after signing him to a three-year contract extension.

Montreal promoted Ducharme from assistant coach to interim bench boss in February after relieving Claude Julien from his duties. The 48-year-old compiled a 15-16-7 record during the regular season before guiding the Habs to the Stanley Cup Final.

"Dominique has managed to set his system in place and establish himself as a head coach in a very unusual season with challenging circumstances," general manager Marc Bergevin said. "While our team has gone through its fair share of adversity, he has shown a lot of control over the situation as well as showing calm and great leadership. These are important qualities that we look for in a head coach, and he fully deserves the chance to lead our team and take it to the next level."

Ducharme coached Canada's world junior team for two years, winning gold in 2018 before joining Montreal as an assistant.

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