Marino was acquired from the Oilers for a conditional sixth-round pick in late-July and signs his entry-level deal with the Penguins a few weeks later. Marino had 11 points (3G / 8A) in 33 games at Harvard University last season.
Dano was originally a first-round pick (No.27 overall in 2013) of the Blue Jackets but was traded to the Blackhawks as a part of the Brandon Saad deal in 2015. Since then, Dano has played 13 games for the Blackhawks, 82 games for the Jets and eight games for the Avalanche. He spent most of last season in the AHL, where he had 30 points (12G / 18A) in 51 games for the Manitoba Moose. Dano will be a fringe NHLer for the Blue Jackets and could start 2020 in the AHL.
Grimaldi had 13 points (5G / 8A) in 53 games with the Predators before adding three goals in five playoff games. The diminutive forward should open 2020 in the Predators’ bottom-6 after a solid showing in the second-half of 2019.
Forsberg was average in his first and only season with the Blackhawks. During his 35 NHL games, Forsberg went 10-16-4 with a 2.97 GAA and .908 SV%. While with Rockford (AHL), the 26-year-old went 15-17-1 wth a 2.64 AA and .919 SV%. With Petr Mrazek and James Reimer already in the NHL, Forsberg is likely headed to Charlotte (AHL) to start 2020.
In his first four NHL seasons, Edmundson has never played more than 69 games. Edmundson had just two goals and nine assists (11 points) in 64 games this past season. The 26-year-old ranked fourth among Blues defensemen in TOI/gm (19:23) while leading them in hits (128) and ranking fourth in blocked shots (106).
Wood, a former third-round pick (No.84 overall in 2014), improved on his 2018 numbers, scoring six goals with 29 assists (35 points) in 68 AHL games in 2019. Wood will almost certainly open the 2020 campaign with Charlotte (AHL).
Carrick has posted back-to-back 40 point seasons in the AHL, scoring nine goals with 38 assists (47 points) in 71 games with Charlotte last year. Carrick, who has just four career NHL games under his belt, will likely open the 2020 season with the San Jose Barracuda (AHL).
Carrick finished the 2019 seaosn tied for fifth among AHL defenseman with 47 points (9G / 38A) in 71 games. Since being drafted in the fourth-round in 2012, Carrick has appeared in just four career NHL games.
Shattenkirk was bought out by the Rangers and the Lightning quickly signed the right-handed defenseman to a one-year deal. Shattenkirk’s two seasons in New York were forgettable, but he should settle into a sheltered third-pairing role with PP time in Tampa Bay. He may no longer be the player capable of posting 56 points like he did in 2017, but Shattenkirk should be able to get back to 35-plus points in 2020.
Hill spent most of the 2019 in the AHL, but also went 7-5-0 with a 2.76 GAA, .901 SV% and one shutout in 13 NHL contests. The former third-round pick was 16-19-2 with a 2.61 GAA and .906 SV% in 36 games in Tucson (AHL). With Antti Raanta and Darcy Kuemper firmly ahead of him on the depth chart, Hill will open the 2020 season with the Roadrunners.
Ullmark appeared in 37 games during his first full year with the Sabres, going 15-14-5 with a 3.11 GAA and .905 SV%. Ullmark will likely play a similar number of games in 2020 as he heads into the season as Carter Hutton’s backup.
McCabe appeared in less than 60 games for the second straight season, posting 14 points (4G / 10A) in 59 games in his fourth full year in Buffalo. On the defensive-side of the puck, McCabe averaged 1.7 hits and 1.7 blocked shots per game while ranking third among Sabres’ defensemen in SH TOI/gm (2:09) and fifth in total ice-time (18:57).
Alexandrov was a second-round pick (No.62 overall) in this summer’s draft. The 18-year-old centre had 27 goals and 34 assists (61 points) in 64 QMJHL games last year. He will return to the Charlottetown Islanders for his third season in 2020.
Elie split the 2019 season between the AHL and NHL. He had one assist in 16 games with Buffalo and 14 points (8G / 6A) in 25 games in Rochester. Elie is likely heading to Rochester (AHL) to start the 2020 season.
Stone appeared in just 14 NHL games and three AHL games last season and the Flames have bought out the final-year of his contract. The emergence of Rasmus Andersson and Juuso Valimaki pushed Stone down the depth chart.
The Rangers signed Shattenkirk to a four-year, $26.6M deal ($6.65M AAV) in 2017 and have bought out the final two-years of his contract. Shattenkirk had just 23 points and 28 points in his first two seasons with the Rangers and the additions of right-handed, offensive-defensemen Jacob Trouba and Adam Fox made Shattenkirk expendable.
Greer split the 2019 season between the AHL and NHL, scoring one goal and one assist in 15 games in Colorado. During his time in the AHL, Greer was second on the team with 44 points (19G / 25A) in 54 games. He will likely start 2020 in the AHL.
Kallionkieli was a fifth-round pick in this summer’s draft after scoring 29 goals and 24 assists (53 points) in 58 games with Sioux City (USHL).
Girard posted a career-high with 27 points (4G / 23A) in 82 games last season. Girard will be the man in Colorado to start 2020 following the trade of Tyson Barrie. However, Cale Makar could quickly elevate up the depth chart but Girard will likely play on the top-pair and second power-play to open the season.
In his second professional season, Butcher had four goals and 26 assists (30 points) in 78 games. It was a step backwards from his rookie campaign and the Devils’ blueline just got a little more crowded with the offseason addition of P.K. Subban. However, Butcher should still see PP1 time throughout the year and should be a solid No.4 fantasy defenseman option.
