The Chicago Blackhawks finished 29-39-14 for 72 points, dead last in the Central Division and 31st overall in the NHL standings.
Connor Bedard has established himself as a franchise center, posting new career highs in goals, assists, and points despite playing on one of the league's worst rosters around him.
The rebuild has produced draft capital, cap space, and a prospect pool that analysts consistently rank among the best in the sport.
What it has not yet produced is the impact forward...
The Winnipeg Jets need to improve this offseason significantly, particularly if they're going to keep all-world goaltender Connor Hellebuyck happy. After the season, he called the team's performance this year "unacceptable" and he's now become a trade target for some hopeful teams this summer. One of the Jets' most urgent needs is a top-six scorer, and to that end, Murat Ates of The Athletic says that a controversial, yet legal, route might be their best option. We’ve s...
The Minnesota Wild , under head coach John Hynes, made it to the second round of the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs. He dragged a team that general manager Bill Guerin constructed. Guerin traded for defenseman Quinn Hughes , but he wasn't the final puzzle piece to lead the Wild to a Stanley Cup. The Wild are a team built with plenty of skill and size, but their 3.27 goals for per 60 were unable to defeat a Colorado Avalanche team that's played consistent hockey with (3.63 gf/60) ...
Now that the Vancouver Canucks have a new general manager in place in Ryan Johnson, and new presidents of hockey operations in the Sedins, it was time to deal with the head coaching situation. And the front office trio has decided that Adam Foote is not the man to lead them forward. Insider Darren Dreger reports that Foote will not return. The Vancouver Canucks continue to make changes. Sources say Adam Foote has been let go as Head Coach. Other changes to the coaching staff also being m...
Coming into the 2025-26 season, not many pundits around hockey would have pegged 30-year-old Darren Raddysh as the top unrestricted free agent defenseman this summer. But here we are. Just two years removed from his first full NHL season, Raddysh broke out in a big way with the Tampa Bay Lightning this year. He slid into the largely absent Victor Hedman spot as the No. 1 blueliner for the Bolts, acting as the quarterback on the power play, and more than doubling his previous career high ...
The Vegas Golden Knights met with the NHL on Tuesday morning to appeal the significant penalties the league handed down for their media violations last week. Many observers around hockey felt that the stiff punishment of losing a second-round pick in this year's draft would be rescinded or lightened. But the NHL is taking a hard stand on this, and the punishment stands. The Vegas Golden Knights appealed the NHL’s punishment in person this morning. It was determined that the penalties - a...
Free agency starts in just six weeks as there's going to be a number of players receiving hefty pay raises on their new deal. The salary cap is going up and the crop of talent this summer isn't as game-breaking as usual, so a player like Bobby McMann is someone to circle as a forward ready to secure the bag. McMann split last season between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Seattle Kraken and posted career highs with 29 goals and 46 points. McMann's combination of speed, skill, and size make him one...
John Chayka doesn't have much choice, he's going to be trading one of his goaltenders this offseason. The freshly minted Maple Leafs general manager is as trade happy as anyone in the league and in order to shore up the Leafs defense core, and find some more depth up front, Chayka's going to have to pull from an area of strength and move one of his goaltenders. The Maple Leafs have four goalies under contract for next season and right now, the most likely to not be traded is Joseph Woll. He's ...
Boone Jenner is in store for a nice payday on July 1. The pending free-agent forward has changed agents this offseason and is setting himself up to meet with teams late next month, to then sign a multi-year contract on July 1st once free agency opens. All signs at the moment are indeed pointing at the long-time Blue Jacket to leave Columbus. The Athletic's Aaron Portzline who is the most in-tune reporter who follows the Blue Jackets daily has made it clear he thinks Jenner is headed elsewhere ...
The Buffalo Sabres are heading home and now some serious roster decisions loom over the franchise. Alex Tuch is a pending unrestricted free agent and could be one of the biggest fish on the market. There's no doubt there's going to be a bidding war for his services, but if it was up to teammate Tage Thompson, the team wouldn't think twice inking Tuch to a long-term extension. “I can tell you that I’d love to have him back,” Thompson said. “He’s an ultimate teammate. He’s a leader on this team....
The Buffalo Sabres exceeded expectations this season, but they'll be heading home for the summer with a sour taste in their mouths after losing Game 7 in overtime to their rival Montreal Canadiens. It was great to see the Sabres relevant again and it's certainly better for hockey in general, so kudos to their management team for turning things around after years and years of disappointment under Kevyn Adams. There's some big decisions to make now heading into the offseason, one that includes t...
The Montreal Canadiens have made it to the second round in the postseason without the help of forward Patrik Laine. Laine, who arrived in Montreal after a trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets, had thought he had found a new home after a miserable experience in the United States. The experiment playing at center with Pascal Vincent leading the charge fell through, and Blue Jackets fans pathologized his mental issues and took to making fun of him on Twitter. Ditching the Union Blue ...
Analytics reigns supreme in the Toronto Maple Leafs front office. The ascent of general manager John Chayka has infused the organization with new blood and a new outlook. For better or worse, it has yet to be determined, as they're going through growing pains. Firing coach Craig Berube and taking a different path. According to TSN's Darren Dreger , the Maple Leafs new direction could find them looking within their own division to find one player who solves their playof...
The ruthlessness of the Vegas Golden Knights front office is unmatched in the NHL. Trading goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury for an unknown prospect, while agent Allan Walsh cried foul on Twitter. Their latest move of infamy is firing former head coach Bruce Cassidy, who took them to their first Stanley Cup win in 2023, and is preventing him from speaking to other teams . They're petty and exercise their power (overtly) when possible. Today, as free-agency inches nearer and...
After losing his No. 1 standing in the Minnesota Wild net late this season, Filip Gustavsson is now facing another significant hurdle for 2026-27. It's been revealed that he will be undergoing hip surgery this week. #mnwild goaltender Filip Gustavsson will undergo surgery on his hip this offseason— questionable if he’ll be ready for start of next year — FOX 9 Sports (@Fox9Sports) May 18, 2026 GM Bill Geurin said at today's meeting with the media that he is unsure if Gustavsson will be re...
The Toronto Maple Leafs ' head coaching search continues to churn away, as they are reaching out far and wide to candidates of all stripes. From newbies to the old experienced hands, from so-called players' coaches to disciplinarians. And everything in between. But one potential candidate, University of Denver bench boss David Carle, has something that no other coach on the Leafs' ever-expanding list can claim: Three national championships. Carle, at the age of just 36, is already a legend in ...
Ilya Mikheyev is set for unrestricted free agency on July 1st, and it sounds like the Chicago Blackhawks have been unable to come to an agreement on extending him. Insider Elliotte Friedman reported Monday morning that the Hawks have made his negotiating rights available for trade. Friedman reports the Blackhawks have made pending UFA Ilya Mikheyev’s negotiating rights available for trade https://t.co/8OoAivYhmK — Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) May 18, 2026 Mikheyev, 31, is coming off a four-yea...
The Toronto Maple Leafs front office is continuing to take shape for the summer. After the hiring of new GM John Chayka and senior executive advisor Mats Sundin, the first to go of the old guard still remaining was Shane Doan, a special advisor to the GM. The next moves, on Sunday, are to cut ties with two assistant GMs, Brandon Pridham and Derek Clancey. Pridham was the team's "salary cap specialist", while Clancey was the AGM of Player Personnel. 🚨 BREAKING: The...
The Minnesota Wild have made the playoffs twice in the last two seasons under head coach John Hynes. This time, they advanced into the second round but were eliminated by their rivals, the Colorado Avalanche, headed by Jared Bednar. After Hynes three-year tenure in Minnesota, and the tumultuous coaching carousel which continues to this day, you have to wonder whether or not he'll be the next coach shuffled back onto the ride, which seems to continue in perpetuity. Hynes reco...
The Minnesota Wild made the blockbuster move of the season this year, acquiring Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks. But GM Bill Guerin didn't stop there according to a report, as he also tried to acquire one of Hughes' brothers, Luke, from the New Jersey Devils. The Minnesota Wild made a pitch to try and acquire Luke Hughes during the season, per @RussoHockey . pic.twitter.com/gcxKpySS8e — PuckEmpire (@puckempire) May 17, 2026 Both of Quinn's brothers, Luke and Jack, play together in New ...
The goaltender market is starting to look like it'll be a busy one this offseason. We've talked a lot about names like pending UFAs Sergei Bobrovsky and Stuart Skinner, and a likely trade candidate like Jordan Binnington. Now we should be adding Darcy Kuemper's name to the list, per Scott Coffman in Mayors Manor . Once the LA Kings work out a new contract for RFA Brandt Clarke, and potentially re-sign pending UFA Scott Laughton, they'll have some cap issues if they were hoping to bring i...
Keep an eye on the Philadelphia Flyers this summer, as general manager Daniel Briere will be looking to add a tandem goaltender partner for Daniel Vladar next season. The Flyers exceeded expectations this season getting to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and now it's on Briere to add around the edges of the roster and get his team in better shape for more noise next spring. Vladar proved he can handle a decent work load and be there in big games, but it's a priority for the Flyer...
The Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs almost pulled off a huge trade before March's deadline, as The Fourth Period's David Pagnotta has recently shed some light on what went on for trade talks between these two teams. Pagnotta reports that the Oilers were open to sending Darnell Nurse to the Leafs in exchange for Morgan Rielly and Nic Roy: The Leafs and Oilers discussed a potential Morgan Rielly trade before the deadline. David Pagnotta expects Edmonton to circle back again, as both team...
After last season you'd think that Dougie Hamilton would have demanded a trade from the New Jersey Devils, but that wasn't the case at all. Now, with a new GM running show in Sunny Mehta, there's been an update on Hamilton's status as a Devil. Turns out Mehta will listen to any trade offers coming his way on just about anyone on the roster, but has made it very clear already in the early days on the job, he's not necessarily shopping Hamilton, and is really a fan of his game. Hamilton had a to...
Keep an eye on the Toronto Maple Leafs over the course of the next few weeks. Newly minted general manager John Chayka has been busy meeting with members of the organization to get a pulse check on the culture of the team, which evidently led to head coach Craig Berube getting fired, and now Chayka turns his attention to his captain, Auston Matthews. Chayka and Matthews will meet in Arizona over the course of the next two weeks and if they're not able to get on the same page about the vision o...