Sparks is expected to go to Vegas to be their third string netminder after going 8-9-1 with a 3.15 GAA and .902 SV5 in 20 games with the Maple Leafs last season. It will likely take an injury to Marc-Andre Fleury and/or Malcolm Subban for Sparks to reach the NHL in 2020.
Copp was awarded a $2.28M AAV contract by an independent arbitrator and is signed through the 2021 season. Copp missed 13 games last year but had a career-high 11 goals to go along with 14 assists while ranking third among Jets forwards in SH TOI/GM (1:22).
After appearing in 48 games with the avalanche in 2018, Lindholm spent almost all of 2019 in the AHL. The 2014 fifth-round pick had one goal and seven assists in 57 AHL games and has four assists in 68 career NHL games. With Cale Makarset to play in his first full NHL season and Conor Timmins turning pro, Lindholm likely won’t be on the Avalanche roster to start 2020.
Shen was a seventh-round pick of the Bruins in 2018 and had one assist in 20 games with Ufa Salavat Yulayev of the KHL last year. Additionally, Shen represented Russia at the U20 World Juniors, where he had three goals and one assist in seven games.
Sissons set career-bests in goals (15) and points (30) in 75 games a season go. Sissons is an integral part of the Predators bottom-6, ranking second on the team in faceoffs (53.1 percent), first among Predators forwards in SH TOI/GM (1:59) and hits (109). It is the type of contract you don’t see very often for a player with Sissons role but the Predators are making a long-term commitment to him.
McCoshen split the 2018-19 season between the AHL and NHL. McCoshen had one goal and one assist in 19 games with Florida and nine assists in 38 games with Springfield. McCoshen will likely open the 2020 season in the AHL yet again.
Mueller, a former first-round pick (No.18 overall in 2013) served as a No.6/7 defenseman with the Devils last season. In 53 games, Mueller had 11 points (1G / 10A) to give him 21 points (3G / 18A) in 135 career NHL games. With P.K. Subban getting added to the Devils’ top-pairing, Mueller will be fighting with Connor Carrick for the No.6 defenseman spot in 2020.
Aston-Reese spent most of the 2018-19 season with the Penguins, where he had eight goals and nine assists (17 points) in 43 games. The 24-year-old posted ridiculous numbers at Northeastern University and solid AHL numbers but will be limited by his bottom-6 role with the Penguins.
The Jets acquired Pionk from the Rangers as a part of the Jacob Trouba trade and signed the RFA defenseman to a two-year contract. Pionk had six goals and 20 assists (26 points) in 73 games last season and will likely open the 2020 season on the Jets second or third pairing.
Sundqvist set career-highs in goals (14), assists (17) and points (31) in 74 games last season. Sundqvist was third among Blues forwards in SH/TOI (1:39), hits (101) and tied for sixth in blocked shots (31). The 25-year-old centre went on to add nine points (4G / 5A) in 25 playoff games to help St. Louis to the Stanley Cup.
Husso appeared in 27 games with San Antonio (AHL) last season, going 6-18-0 with a 3.67 GAA and .871 SV%. With Jordan Binnington and Jake Allen clearly ahead of him on the depth chart, Husso will remain in the AHL to start the 2020 campaign.
McGinn has settled in as a bottom-6 winger in Carolina, picking up 26 points (10G / 16A) in 82 games in 2018-19. With proven top-9 players like Ryan Dzingel and Erik Haula coming in this summer, McGinn will continue to be limited to a fourth-line role in 2020.
The Alberta rivals swap bad contracts. Going to Edmonton is James Neal, who has four years left with a $5.75M cap-hit. The Oilers are retaining 12.5 percent ($750K) of Lucic’s AAV which means they are taking on an additional $500K AAV in cap-space in this trade. Neal struggled mightily in his first season with the Flames, posting just 19 points (7G / 12A) in 63 games. With so few talented wingers in Edmonton, Neal should see consistent top-6 minutes—at least to start the year.
Lucic waived his no-movement clause to get dealt to Calgary and brings a contract that has four years left on it with a $6.0M cap-hit—however the Oilers retained 12.5 percent of that contract ($750K) to make his cap-hit with the Flames $5.25M AAV. . Lucic had a solid first year with the Oilers but has combined for just 54 points (16G / 38A) in 161 games over the past two seasons. Lucic will likely be tasked with playing a physical, bottom-6 role in Calgary—replacing what they lost with Garnet Hathaway going to Washington this summer.
The Rangers acquired the RFA defenseman from the Jets for Neal Pionk and a 2019 first-round pick on June 18th and signed him through the 2025-26 season. Trouba is coming off of the best year of his career, posting 50 points (8G / 42A) in 82 games with Winnipeg. Trouba immediately becomes the Rangers best defenseman and should see more minutes than he ever saw with the Jets.
Byram was picked No.4 overall this summer after scoring 26 goals with 45 assists (71 points) in 67 games with the Vancouver Giants. Byram was considered the most NHL-ready defenseman in the draft but could be one-year away from cracking the Avalanche lineup in 2020.
Montembeault was forced into NHL action last year, going 4-3-2 wth a 3.04 GAA and .894 SV% in 11 games. Montembeault currently projects to serve as Sergei Bobrovsky’s backup following Roebrto Luongo’s retirement and the James Reimer trade but things could change before the start of the 2020 campaign.
Hudon spent the entire 2019 season with the Canadiens but appeared in just 32 games and picked up just five points (3G / 2A). It was a disappointing year for Hudon, who had 30 points in 2018. With Ryan Poehling and Nick Suzuki pushing for the NHL, Hudon will likely be an extra forward to start 2020.
Di Giuseppe was originally picked in the second-round by the Hurricanes back in 2012 but was waived last season and had a brief stint with the Nashville Predators. He has posted decent numbers at lower-levels but has just 41 points (14G / 27A) in 150 career NHL games. The 25-year-old will either start the season in the AHL or as a fourth-liner.
Masin was a second-round pick (No.35 overall) in 2014 and had 12 points (2G / 10A) in 69 games in his third full AHL season. The 23-year-old has good size (6-foot-2, 196 lbs.) for the NHL but projects to be no more than a third-pairing defenseman and won’t be with the Lightning to start the 2020 season.
