The Columbus Blue Jackets are closing in on signing forward Max Domi to a two-year deal with a value of approximately $10 million, according to theScore's John Matisz.
Columbus acquired Domi and the No. 78 pick in Wednesday's draft in exchange for forward Josh Anderson, who is also a restricted free agent. The Blue Jackets selected defenseman Samuel Knazko with the selection.
More to come.
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The Montreal Canadiens traded forward Max Domi and a 2020 third-round pick to the Columbus Blue Jackets for forward Josh Anderson, the team announced Tuesday.
Both players are currently restricted free agents.
The 25-year-old Domi spent the last two seasons with the Canadiens. He set career highs in goals (28), assists (44), and points (72) in 2018-19, and managed 17 goals and 27 assists in 71 games last season.
Anderson, 26, appeared in just 26 contests in 2019-20 due to injury, recording one goal and three assists. He also set career highs in goals (27), assists (20), and points (47) in 2018-19.
While Anderson missed the majority of the 2019-20 season and the entirety of the playoffs, Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen recently said the forward is fully healed and would have played if Columbus advanced in the postseason, according to The Athletic's Aaron Portzline.
Anderson will join a group on the right wing in Montreal that includes Brendan Gallagher and Joel Armia.
Domi, who expressed his desire to play center during his time in Montreal, figures to slot down the middle in Columbus.
"Strengthening our center ice position has been a priority for our club and we are extremely excited to add a player of Max Domi's talent and character to the Columbus Blue Jackets," Kekalainen said. "He is a skilled playmaker that also brings grit and competitiveness, and we think he will be a great addition to our team."
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The King of New York could soon be heading to the nation's capital.
There's a "strong possibility" the Washington Capitals will land goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, reports TSN's Pierre LeBrun on Tuesday's edition of "Insider Trading."
The 38-year-old netminder was bought out of the final year of his contract by the New York Rangers last week. Lundqvist indicated his desire to continue playing shortly afterward, saying he "still wants to win."
The Capitals are expected to part ways with longtime goaltender and pending free agent Braden Holtby this offseason, which would open up a spot in the crease alongside 23-year-old Ilya Samsonov.
Lundqvist endured the worst statistical season of his career last year after appearing in 30 games and posting a .901 save percentage with a 3.52 goals-against average.
Washington currently has $8.9 million in projected cap space for next season.
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The Arizona Coyotes are shopping the negotiating rights for pending free agent Taylor Hall, reports TSN's Darren Dreger.
Hall is projected to be the top free-agent forward this offseason.
The Coyotes previously expressed interest in re-signing the forward. General manager Bill Armstrong, who was hired in August, recently said the team will have to be "very creative" to retain Hall.
The 28-year-old recorded 16 goals and 36 assists in 65 games with the Coyotes and the New Jersey Devils last season. He previously won the Hart Trophy with the Devils in 2018.
Hall has recorded 218 goals and 345 assists in 627 career games.
The team that owns Hall's negotiating rights is able to exclusively discuss a new contract with him prior to the opening of the free-agency period. Once it opens on Friday, Oct. 9, any team in the league will be able to make its pitch to Hall.
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The Philadelphia Flyers have re-signed Justin Braun to a two-year contract carrying an average annual value of $1.8 million, the team announced Monday.
Braun recently completed his first season with the Flyers after the team acquired him from the San Jose Sharks last summer. He amassed three goals and 16 assists in 62 games.
The 33-year-old averaged 17:16 minutes of ice time and finished tied for second on the team with 84 blocked shots.
The Flyers' blue line took a hit on Monday after defenseman Matt Niskanen reportedly informed the team of his plans to retire. With the absence of Niskanen, Philadelphia now has five defensemen signed for the 2020-21 season.
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Defenseman Matt Niskanen informed the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday that he is retiring from hockey at the age of 33, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.
Niskanen has one season remaining on his contract with a cap hit of $5.75 million. If he officially retires, he would forfeit the money that's owed to him and his cap hit would also come off the books, according to CapFriendly.
He appeared in 68 games with the Flyers last season, scoring eight goals and adding 25 assists. He also appeared in 15 games with the Flyers during the postseason.
More to come.
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The Pittsburgh Penguins have placed defenseman Jack Johnson on unconditional waivers for the purpose of buying out his contract, the team announced Monday.
Johnson has three years remaining on his contract with an average annual value of $3.25 million.
More to come.
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The Toronto Maple Leafs re-signed veteran Jason Spezza to a one-year deal with a value of $700,000, the team announced on Monday.
The contract marks the second straight one-year, league-minimum deal for the 37-year-old, who signed with Toronto last season for the same amount.
The Mississauga, Ontario native filled a bottom-six role with Toronto, recording nine goals and 16 assists in 58 games while averaging 10:50 of ice time last season.
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New Jersey Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald is putting his faith in the team's young core to develop and help create a winning culture rather than relying on bringing in immediate help with big moves.
"I'm not looking for a quick fix here. When this team takes off is when (Jack Hughes) and (Nico Hischier) take off for good," Fitzgerald said, according to NHL.com's Mike Morreale. "They're the type of players that can pull everybody with you.
"I'm going to be true to myself and true to this plan that we're not going to get ahead of ourselves. We're going to do this the right way and we're going to chip away and we're going to find the right support for our young future stars to help them grow, because they're still so young and they're ready to go."
The Devils iced one of the youngest and most inexperienced teams in the league during the 2019-20 season, finishing the year with just three players over the age of 30.
Beyond Hischier and Hughes, New Jersey is backstopped by the 23-year-old MacKenzie Blackwood and has a good crop of young prospects. Fitzgerald is willing to wait for his star players to progress properly.
"(Hischier) is in his fourth year and I know he's ready to take a big step," Fitzgerald said. "(Hughes) is going to take a step, we're just not sure how big that step will be. It's going to be exciting to see how big of a step he takes. We want to allow our kids to grow at their pace without rushing them into the NHL because we need to."
The Devils parted ways with Taylor Hall, Blake Coleman, Sami Vatanen, Andy Greene, and Wayne Simmonds during the 2019-20 season. As a result, they have nine picks in the upcoming draft, including three in the first round.
"It's exciting times," Fitzgerald said. "Sometimes it may be hard to not have an itchy trigger finger and pull things off because they look great, but it just has to make sense for where we're at and where we want to go."
He added: "The only thing I'm looking forward to is helping these young kids like (Hughes and Hischier), the rest of the prospects, the core kids, and watch them develop and grow together. Then whenever that time is, we just watch them create that winning culture. That's what I'm trying to do right now."
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The Montreal Canadiens could be looking to shake things up ahead of this year's draft. General manager Marc Bergevin has let teams know his team's No. 16 selection is available for the right price.
"I’ve had conversations with other teams to check on whether certain players might be available. I was asked if my (first-round) pick might be available, and I answered yes, though I won’t trade that pick just to trade it," Bergevin said, according to The Athletic's Arpon Basu and Marc Antoine Godin. "It has to be for a player who would help us right away. And then there’s the contract. Trading the 16th pick for a player that has one year left on his contract before becoming a free agent, that’s not the smartest thing to do either.
"But my pick is even more available (than usual), yes."
While Bergevin is open to trading his team's top pick, he is looking for a top-six forward in return, reported TSN's Pierre LeBrun on Thursday's edition of "Insider Trading."
The Canadiens' offense showed immense potential during the 2019-20 postseason when they knocked out the top-seeded Pittsburgh Penguins in the qualifying round.
With the sudden rise of youngsters like Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Nick Suzuki and the aging of core veterans such as Carey Price and Shea Weber, Bergevin believes relying on their youth and not having to add depth players in the offseason can keep his squad moving forward.
"There’s no doubt we are working with a small sample size with what happened in 10 games (in the postseason), but at a certain point you have to take the risk that your kids will keep progressing," he said. "We’ve reached a point where we’re ready to take that risk."
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