The NHL's investigation into gambling allegations made against Evander Kane is expected to wrap up before the start of training camp in mid-September, league deputy commissioner Bill Daly said in an email to The Mercury News' Curtis Pashelka.

Daly also added that the San Jose Sharks forward has not been suspended.

Evander's wife, Anna, said he threw his own games for gambling reasons in a series of Instagram stories posted Saturday. The NHL released a statement of its own, saying the league would be taking her allegations "very seriously."

The following day, Evander denied Anna's claims, tweeting, "I have NEVER gambled/bet on hockey, NEVER gambled/bet on a Sharks game, NEVER gambled/bet on any of my games, and NEVER thrown a hockey game."

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Penny Oleksiak better look out: There's a new swimmer in the family.

The Olympian's brother, Seattle Kraken defenseman Jamie Oleksiak, says he's started to incorporate swimming into his training regimen to help get himself out of his comfort zone.

"I might have to race Penny," Jamie joked in an interview with TSN's Mark Masters. "I'm gonna need a long, long head start before she gets going."

Swimming is a "late development" for the 28-year-old, but he's giving it a go.

"Things can get kind of monotonous when you do the same training over and over again. So I think doing swimming is something a little bit different, kind of use different muscles that you're not used to and developing them," Jamie said.

Jamie has a lot of work to do before he can reach the same heights as his sister, who just became the all-time most decorated Canadian Olympian while competing at the Tokyo Games.

"I wouldn't say I'm the best swimmer ever," he said, adding, "I'm definitely more of a sinker."

Jamie's favorite stroke at the moment is freestyle.

"I can't do anything else, basically," he said. "I'm not much of a swimmer, so I'm sticking to the basics right now, we'll see what happens down the road, though."

Between Penny's historic success and Jamie's new five-year deal with the Kraken, the Oleksiaks will have plenty to celebrate when Penny returns to Canada. Jamie says the family plans to head to the cottage and catch up.

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Seventeen NHL players filed for salary arbitration before Sunday's 5 p.m. ET deadline, the NHLPA announced.

Here's the complete list:

The deadline for club-elected salary arbitration notification is Aug. 2 at 5 p.m. ET. Hearings will be held from Aug. 11-26.

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A member of Jack Eichel's medical team says replacing the herniated disc in the Buffalo Sabres star's neck would set him up for a better future.

Dr. Chad Prusmack outlined two pathways available for Eichel on Jeff Marek and Elliotte Friedman's "31 Thoughts" podcast. The first, which is what the Sabres prefer, is an anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) surgery. The procedure Prusmack recommends for the Sabres captain is an artificial disc replacement surgery.

In both procedures, the injured disc is removed through the front of the throat. However, in a fusion surgery, a surgeon will insert a graft, and the bones will fuse over time. In a replacement surgery, meanwhile, the disc is swapped out for an artificial one. Prusmack likens the replacement procedure to getting an artificial knee or hip.

The handling of Eichel's injury has been a major point of contention between the 24-year-old and the Sabres this offseason, with his agents saying in a statement that Buffalo "was in agreement with the artificial disc replacement surgery until that was no longer the case."

Prusmack assures both surgeries are "phenomenal procedures," but getting an artificial disc would suit Eichel's needs moving forward as it allows "better flexibility."

"That guy's slap shot and the way he's got to use his position sense, he's going to lose that if he gets a fusion. When you fuse the spine, it's hard to know where your head is on top of your shoulders," he explained.

"You want to make Jack Eichel as close of an identical twin to what Jack Eichel is after the surgery," Prusmack said, adding, "I think that he would perform better ... let's restore the motion so that he can perform at the elite level he does."

A concern for the Sabres is that no NHL player has ever undergone artificial disc replacement surgery, and it only became available to use in 2000, but Prusmack notes that athletes in other sports such as rugby and MMA have found the procedure to be successful. Hockey players have received the surgery, just not at the pro level.

Prusmack also said the recovery timetable for a replacement surgery is shorter. If Eichel were to receive the fusion surgery, he would be re-evaluated in three months and if that went well, he could be on track to return in six-to-nine months. With a replacement surgery, he could return to the ice within six weeks and engage in contact after eight weeks.

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The NHL will investigate San Jose Sharks forward Evander Kane after his wife, Anna, made a series of allegations about his gambling on social media.

In three Instagram Stories posted Saturday, Anna accused Evander of throwing games to support his gambling addiction.

"How does the NHL let a compulsive gambling addict still play when he's obviously throwing games with bookies to win money?" she wrote. "Maybe someone needs to address this."

Anna also called NHL commissioner Gary Bettman into question, asking him how the league can "let a player gamble on his own games."

The NHL addressed the situation in a statement, saying it will be taking the allegations "very seriously."

"The integrity of our game is paramount," the league wrote. "We intend to conduct a full investigation and will have no further comment at this time."

The Sharks announced they have been in contact with the league about the allegations, according to The Athletic's Kevin Kurz.

"We support a full and transparent investigation into the situation to maintain the integrity of the game and consistency with our team values," the team said.

Evander filed for bankruptcy in January. He reportedly had $26.8 million of debt at the time of his filing and held assets of only $10.2 million.

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Vegas Golden Knights forward Alex Tuch is expected to miss six months after undergoing shoulder surgery, the team announced Friday.

With the 2021-22 NHL season slated to start in October, Tuch is unlikely to play until January or February.

General manager Kelly McCrimmon said Tuch's shoulder bothered him throughout the season, but the team initially believed that surgery wouldn't be necessary, Ben Gotz of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports.

Tuch had 33 points in 55 games during the 2020-21 campaign before registering nine points in 19 playoff contests. He scored a career-best 1.17 goals per 60 minutes, according to Natural Stat Trick.

The 25-year-old carries a $4.75-million cap hit. The Golden Knights will be cap compliant once placing him on long-term injured reserve, The Athletic's Jesse Granger notes. Vegas could then sign restricted free agents Nolan Patrick and Dylan Coghlan.

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The Columbus Blue Jackets have signed defenseman Zach Werenski to a six-year contract extension with an average annual value of $9.583 million, the team announced Thursday.

Werenski has made a huge impact in the five seasons he's been in Columbus. The 24-year-old is the Jackets' all-time leader in goals (65) by a blue-liner. Since his debut in 2016, he's tied for third among NHL defensemen in goals and 19th in points (189).

"The city of Columbus has been so good to me, it's close to home and my family, and as I thought about it, it was really a no-brainer," Werenski said. "I'm a Blue Jacket. I want to continue to be a Blue Jacket and do everything I can to bring a Stanley Cup here."

The Michigan native has one season left on a three-year contract that carries a cap hit of $5 million, meaning his new deal will kick in for the 2022-23 campaign.

The extension includes a full no-movement clause in the second through fifth seasons, and in the sixth year, it modifies to a 10-team trade list, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.

Werenski's 2020-21 season ended early due to a sports hernia, but he registered 20 points in 35 contests while playing an average of 24:22 per game.

The 6-foot-2 left-handed shot will be without his main defensive partner moving forward, as Seth Jones was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks on July 23.

Werenski was drafted eighth overall by the Blue Jackets in 2015.

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NHL commissioner Gary Bettman didn't mince words when talking about the Montreal Canadiens' controversial selection of Logan Mailloux during last week's draft.

"I was stunned. Surprised wouldn't begin to explain my reaction," Bettman said on "The Power Play with Steve Kouleas" on Thursday. "I'm a dad of two daughters, I have four granddaughters. What was done was horrific."

Mailloux was charged and fined in Sweden last fall for invasion of privacy and defamation after taking a photo of a woman without consent during a sexual encounter and distributing it.

He put out a statement last Tuesday asking teams not to draft him, writing that he hadn't "demonstrated strong enough maturity or character to earn that privilege."

Three days later, the Habs selected him 31st overall.

"Everybody's focusing on the player - he said he didn't want to be drafted, the Canadiens drafted him anyway," Bettman said. "There's no mechanism not to be drafted, it's not within the player's control in any circumstance to decide when he wants to be drafted."

Bettman acknowledged Canadiens owner Geoff Molson's statement on the selection, adding that the situation is going to "require evaluation going forward."

"I don't think anybody should lose sight of the impact of what happened on the victim and the victim's family," Bettman said. "While (Molson) said the Canadiens and Logan are going to try and make good, we're gonna have to see what that means moving forward in all contexts."

Bettman added: "They’re going to continue to see how this evolves, how he progresses ... and at the appropriate time, we may be called on if and when they want him to play and he wants to play."

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The Montreal Canadiens have signed free-agent forward Mathieu Perreault to a one-year deal worth $950,000, the team announced Thursday.

The 33-year-old Quebec native spent the last seven seasons with the Winnipeg Jets. He recorded 19 points in 56 games while averaging 11:43 of ice time this past campaign.

Perreault is a versatile, two-way player who can slot in at both center and winger, providing a boost to the Canadiens' depth.

Perreault, who played three minor-league seasons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, was drafted by the Washington Capitals in 2006. He's also suited up for the Anaheim Ducks. Perreault has 343 points in 683 career NHL games.

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The Buffalo Sabres are taking care of business in their own crease.

Buffalo signed free-agent goalies Craig Anderson and Aaron Dell to one-year deals worth $750,000, the team announced Wednesday.

Anderson started just two regular-season games with the Washington Capitals last season, but he authored a stellar .929 save percentage in two playoff appearances.

The 40-year-old spent the bulk of his career with the Ottawa Senators, where he holds the franchise record in wins (202). He has also suited up for the Chicago Blackhawks, Florida Panthers, and Colorado Avalanche.

Anderson ranks fifth among active goalies in career wins (291) and second in career saves (19,994). He owns a .913 save percentage across 652 games played.

Dell, 32, has authored a .906 save percentage across 114 career NHL games, most of which he's played with the San Jose Sharks. The 32-year-old recorded a .857 save percentage in seven contests with the New Jersey Devils this past season.

The Sabres were in need of goaltenders after Linus Ullmark and Carter Hutton departed in free agency. Buffalo's top goalie prospect, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, and Dustin Tokarski are likely destined for the minors.

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