Frondell was the 3rd overall pick in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft and has signed a three-year, entry-level contract worth $975,000 AAV with Chicago on Tuesday. The 18-year-old Swedish forward is expected to compete for a spot in the Blackhawks' lineup in training camp after putting up 11 goals and 25 points in 29 games with Djurgardens IF (HockeyAllsvenskan) in 2024-25 in Sweden.
Mrtka was Buffalo's 2025 1st round pick (9th overall) and has signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Sabres on Tuesday. The 18-year-old Czech defenseman spent 2024-25 as an import player with Seattle (WHL), where he excelled with three goals and 35 points in 43 games played. He is expected to return to the Thunderbirds for the 2025-26 season but will get a chance to make an impression in training camp.
Manitoba (AHL) will bring back one of its most physical defenders after the team announced Tuesday that Winnipeg had re-signed Tyrel Bauer to a one-year, two-way contract extension. The 23-year-old defenseman is entering his fourth season with the Moose and has yet to make his NHL debut. In 59 games in 2024-25, he had just two assists and 105 PIMs to go along with his -21 plus/minus.
Boston will keep a familiar face around for the upcoming season after announcing they have signed John Farinacci to a one-year, two-way contract on Tuesday. The 24-year-old forward made his NHL debut in 2024-25 with the Bruins, scoring his first career goal in his only game appearance. He is expected to fight for a bottom-six spot out of training camp but will likely start the season back in Providence (AHL) where he had 10 goals and 38 points in 58 games last season.
Despite being the talk of much trade speculation, Buffalo and Bowen Byram will avoid arbitration after they agreed on a two-year, $12.5 million contract extension ($6,250,000 AAV) on Monday. The 24-year-old is entering his 6th NHL season after completing all 82 regular season games for the first time in his career in 2024-25, putting up seven goals, 38 points and a +11 plus/minus.
Sabourin is a 32-year-old veteran who has spent most of his career in the AHL. Most recently, he was with the Sharks for the last two seasons, where he had just four NHL appearances. He had 10 goals and 15 assists (25 points) to go along with 111 PIMS in 68 AHL games in 2024-25.
Barron had eight goals and seven assists (15 points) in 74 games with the Jets in 2024-25. Barron found a role on the Jets' fourth line but he will have more competition for minutes in 2025-26 after the signings of Gustav Nyquist, Tanner Pearson and Cole Koepke.
Stillman was the 29th overall pick of the New Jersey Devils in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. The 22-year-old forward has yet to play an NHL game and has already joined his third organization. He had three points (1G / 2A) in 19 games with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL) last season.
Silovs is a talented goalie who has battled inconsistencies and was buried on Vancouver's depth chart behind Thatcher Demko and Kevin Lankinen. He is coming off a terrific Calder Cup-winning postseason with the Abbotsford Canucks (AHL), posting a stellar 2.01 GAA and .931 SV% in 24 appearances (16-7). With the recent departure of Alex Nedeljkovic, Silovs could have an opportunity for a heavier workload at the NHL level this season.
Skinner signed with the Oilers last summer but struggled in 2024-25, recording 29 points (16G / 13) while averaging just 13:00 TOI/gm. In San Jose he should have a larger role, likely in the top-6 and will look to get back to 20-plus goals for the 11th time in his career.
San Jose acquired some grit and toughness late Thursday night when they announced they had traded 24-year-old defenseman Henry Thrun to Toronto for forward Ryan Reaves. Reaves is a 38-year-old enforcer entering his 16th NHL season and should find a spot in San Jose's bottom-six. He struggled to stick with Toronto last season, collecting just two assists and 28 PIMs in 35 games played.
Toronto added to its defensive depth late Thursday night after they acquired Henry Thrun from San Jose for 38-year-old enforcer Ryan Reaves. Thrun is a 24-year-old mobile defenseman entering his third full NHL season. He put up two goals and 12 points despite an ugly -23 plus/minus across 60 games with the Sharks in 2024-25. He will battle for one of Toronto's final defensive spots to start the season.
Manson still had one year left on his current contract, but will extend his time with the Avalanche for two more years after he signed a two-year contract extension worth $3.95 million AAV ($7.9M total). The 33-year-old bruising defenseman only appeared in 48 games in 2024-25 due to injury, but still had a goal, 15 points and 28 PIMs. He is entering his fifth season with Colorado and is expected to return to his regular defensive role.
San Jose added to their goaltending depth on Thursday after adding 25-year-old netminder Jakub Skarek on a one-year, two-way contract. The Czech goaltender made his NHL debut in 2024-25 with the Islanders, but struggled with a 0-1-0 record, .872 SV% and 3.94 GAA. He is expected to start the 2025-26 season with the San Jose Barracuda (AHL).
