NHL Hockey Player News

Grant was re-acquired from Pittsburgh during the 2018-19 season and finished the year with 14 points (4G / 10A) in 56 games between the Penguins and Ducks (2G / 7A in 31 games). Grant will likely serve as the Ducks fourth line centre in 2019-20.

Holzer split the 2018-19 season between the AHL and NHL, collecting just one goal and three assists (four points) in 22 games with Anaheim. Holzer has been with the Ducks since 2015-16 and has averaged 25 games, one goal and three assists per season as their seventh defenseman.

Miller appeared in 20 games in his second season with the Ducks, going 8-7-2 with a 2.76 GAA and .912 SV%. He wasn’t as good as he was in 2017-18 but is a steady backup option for John Gibson, especially considering Gibson’s health issues in recent years.

Callahan has degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine that will likely end his career at the age of 34. Callahan has one-year remaining on his contract that would have carried a $5.8M cap-hit but LTIR will provide the Lightning with some cap relief. Callahan finished the 2018-19 season with seven goals and 10 assists (17 points) in just 52 games.

Edler is coming off of one of the best seasons of his career despite missing 26 games due to injury. Edler scored double-digit goals for the first time since 2011-12 and added 24 assists. That’s a 15-goal, 35-assist (50 points) per 82 game campaign from the 33-year-old, who hasn’t appeared in 82 games since 2012. With the Canucks emerging as a strong offensive team, Edler will carry some fantasy value into 2019-20 but injuries are always a huge concern for the big Swede.

Walcott was originally selected in the fifth round by the Rangers in 2014 but has been with the Lightning organization since 2015-16. Walcott appeared in just five AHL games this season, missing 71 with a shoulder injury that he suffered with the Lightning at the beginning of the 2018 preseason.

Hogberg spent most of the 2018-19 season with the Belleville Senators (AHL) where he was named the team’s most valuable player after going 21-17-4 with a 2.32 GAA and .917 SV% in 39 games. During his four games with Ottawa, the 24-year-old was 0-2-1 with a 4.09 GAA and .884 SV%. He will likely start the 2019-20 season with Belleville.

Perry had two years left on his eight-year, $69.0M ($8.625M AAV) deal that he signed in March of 2013. Perry was a great scorer for Anaheim after being picked No.28 overall in 2003 but his production has dropped off in the last two seasons. The 34-year-old had just 23 goals and 36 assists (59 points) in 102 games over the last two seasons. The buyout will cost the Ducks $2.625M against the Salary Cap in 2019-20.

Hayes was acquired from the Jets for a 2019 fifth-round pick in early-June and was set to become a free agent on July 1st. Hayes is coming off of a career-year, scoring 19 goals with 36 assists (55 points) in 71 games with the Rangers and Jets. The 27-year-old is now signed through the 2025-26 season and is the third highest paid player on the Flyers.

Englund, 23, was a second-round pick in 2014 and has played sparingly in the NHL since, including three games this season. During his time in the AHL, the 6-foot-3, 189 lbs. defenseman scored three goals with 11 assists (14 points) in 68 games.

Braun is entering the final year of his five year deal that carries a $3.8M cap-hit and is a cap casualty after the Sharks signed Erik Karlsson on Monday. San Jose still needs to sign RFA’s Timo Meier and Kevin Labanc and could extend offers to veteran UFA’s Joe Pavelski, Joe Thornton and Gustav Nyquist. As for the Flyers, they continue to beef up the right-side of their blueline. They parted ways with Andrew MacDonald, swapped Radko Gudas for Matt Niskanan and now add Braun, who had 16 points (2G / 14A) in 78 games a season ago.

This is a low-cost deal for Coburn, who was set to become a UFA on July 1st. The stay-at-home defenseman had a surprising offensive season, posting 23 points (4G / 19A) in 74 games—his highest point total since 2011-12. Coburn has settled into a third-pairing role late in his career and carried a strong 52.6 CorsiFor% and +2.2 CF%rel this past season.

Trouba is a restricted free agent on July 1st but gives the Rangers a bonafide first-pairing defenseman, something they played the entire 2018-19 season without. After missing a combined 49 games in 2017 and 2018, Trouba appeared in all 82 games last year and set a new career-high with 50 points (8G / 42A). Trouba will log massive minutes for the Rangers next season and helps accelerate their rebuild, which was also aided by landing the No.2 overall pick in this year’s draft.

Pionk had six goals and 20 assists (26 points) in 73 games with the Rangers in his first full NHL season in 2018-19. Like Trouba, Pionk is also a restricted free agent on July 1st, but will command a lot less money and will allow the Jets to get Patrik Laine and Kyle Connor this offseason. Winnipeg loses a top-pairing defenseman and get a player who looks like nothing more than a third-pairing player with modest offensive-upside.

Hannikainen spent the entire season with the Blue Jackets, where he recorded seven points (4G / 3A) in 44 games. Hannikainen will likely continue to serve as a fourth-line/reserve forward for the Blue Jackets in 2019-20.

Karlsson was set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1st but the Sharks have locked him up through the 2026-27 season. Karlsson’s new $11.5M cap-hit, represents a $5.0M raise and makes him the highest-paid defenseman in the NHL. After a slow-start and an injury plagued season, Karlsson posted his lowest point total (45) since 2012-13, but his point-per-game number (0.849) was right there with his most recent seasons.

Duclair was acquired from the Blue Jackets as a part of the Matt Duchene trade and drastically improved his numbers in Ottawa. Duclair saw over 1:30 TOI more per game with the Senators and scored eight goals with six assists (14 points) in 21 games. With a lack of talent in Ottawa heading into 2019-20, Duclair should continue to play a middle-6 role for the Senators.