Jay Woodcroft and Dean Evason are among the finalists for the Columbus Blue Jackets' head coaching vacancy, reports The Athletic's Aaron Portzline.

Both candidates have attended several interviews with president of hockey operations and general manager Don Waddell and other members of Columbus' front office.

Woodcroft coached the Edmonton Oilers for parts of three seasons - his only NHL head coaching job - before he was fired after a 3-9-1 start to the 2023-24 campaign. He led the Oilers to the 2022 Western Conference Final. His .643 points percentage is the eighth-best mark all time among coaches with at least 100 games.

Evason's only stint as an NHL bench boss came with the Minnesota Wild, whom he guided for parts of five campaigns before he was let go following a 5-10-4 start in 2023-24. He led the Wild to four postseason appearances but never won a round. His .639 points percentage is 12th-best all time among qualified coaches.

Former San Jose Sharks and Los Angeles Kings bench boss Todd McLellan was reportedly Waddell's first choice for the job but is no longer in the running after contract negotiations fell apart. Because McLellan still had another year left on his contract before the Kings fired him last season, the two teams need to negotiate how much of his contract Columbus would pay.

However, the Blue Jackets could circle back to McLellan, a source told Portzline.

Pascal Vincent coached the Blue Jackets to a disappointing 27-43-12 record in 2023-24 before he was fired in June. Columbus hired Vincent late in training camp last year to replace Mike Babcock, who resigned before coaching a single game with the club following allegations of player mistreatment.

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The Carolina Hurricanes lost several key players to unrestricted free agency this offseason, including both members of their shutdown defense pair of Brady Skjei and Brett Pesce, prized trade deadline pickup Jake Guentzel, longtime winger Teuvo Teravainen, and depth forward Stefan Noesen.

Head coach Rod Brind'Amour admitted the process hasn't been easy.

"You get attached to the guys, especially when we've had them (for a long time)," Brind'Amour said Wednesday. "It was hard, I'll be honest. It was hard to watch guys walk out of here. I understand it. It's a business. They've got to do what they've got to do. But it's also exciting because you get a whole new group of guys coming in, and maybe some of these young guys will crack the lineup and you get to watch them grow. It's just the evolution of it."

The Hurricanes were able to retain a pair of notable UFAs in Jordan Martinook and Jalen Chatfield, though. They also signed Jaccob Slavin to an eight-year extension.

But to further the offseason of change, Brind'Amour has a new boss. Don Waddell, Carolina's former president and general manager, resigned from his post this offseason and joined the Columbus Blue Jackets. Eric Tulsky replaced Waddell as the club's GM.

There also rumors of a Martin Necas trade, though nothing has materialized yet.

The Hurricanes haven't made any major offseason splashes, but they added Shayne Gostisbehere and Sean Walker to help replace Skjei and Pesce on defense, and they brought in Jack Roslovic, William Carrier, Eric Robinson, and Tyson Jost to fill some voids up front.

"There's a learning curve on any team," Brind'Amour said. "There is familiarity with 'Ghost.' With Walker coming in, he's excited to play the way we play. Most players like the way we play, and they want to do it. We are up-tempo, and it's a fun way to play. At the end of the day, these guys are good hockey players. If they have a willingness to get it, they will get it."

Carolina has about $11.6 million left in projected cap space, but it still has multiple unsigned restricted free agents, including Necas, Seth Jarvis, and Jack Drury.

Brind'Amour is set to enter his seventh season as the Hurricanes' head coach. The Canes have made the playoffs every year under his watch, and Brind'Amour won the Jack Adams Award in 2021.

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The St. Louis Blues signed free-agent defenseman Ryan Suter to a one-year pact, the team announced Wednesday.

The contract includes a base salary of $775,000, but Suter can earn an additional $2.225 million in performance bonuses.

Suter will receive paychecks from three of the Central Division's eight teams this coming season. The Dallas Stars bought out the final year of his contract earlier this offseason, and he'll remain on the Minnesota Wild's books for four more seasons from the 2021 buyout. He's the second player in NHL history to be bought out twice.

The 39-year-old recorded two goals and 15 assists in 82 games while averaging 18:56 of ice time in 2023-24. He added four points in 19 postseason appearances.

His best ability at this point in his career is arguably his availability. Suter has played 453 straight contests - the second-longest ironman streak among active players - and hasn't missed more than five games in a single campaign since 2010-11.

While the offense has mostly deteriorated, Suter still managed to post strong defensive metrics in primarily a third-pairing role with the Stars last season.

Suter will bring more experience to an already grizzled blue line in St. Louis. Top-four stalwarts Colton Parayko, Nick Leddy, Justin Faulk, and Torey Krug are all at least 31 years old. Suter projects to compete for a spot on the third pair with Scott Perunovich, Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Tyler Tucker, and Matthew Kessel - all of whom are 25 or younger.

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Back-to-back Pacific Division titles? That’s what it is on the line for the Canucks this season so Matt and Blake take a look at the changes made by their closest rivals, and the Oilers specifically, to see how the Canucks stack up next season. The guys also look back on Canada’s failed attempt to slay the giant that is Argentina in the Copa America. How close were they, and can they eventually start to take down a world power like that?

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