Five Minute Major

*Photo from NBC Chicago*     The Chicago Blackhawks may have lost 4-3 to the Detroit Red Wings in their first preseason game, but it was who played that was far more important. Longtime captain and center Jonathan Toews made his return to the ice for the Blackhawks, after missing all of last season after suffering from chronic immune response syndrome.    Toews last played for the Blackhawks in game 5 of the 2020 playoffs first round in the Edmonton Bubble against the Vegas Golden Knights, the game that the Blackhawks got eliminated in. He logged 22:48 of ice time in his first game, centering the top line with Dominik Kubalik on his left and Philipp Kurashev on his right.    Toews said "Obviously, I've got my work cut out for me, but it's coming. So just happy to be out there. Obviously, the legs are tired. We've got pretty good skates in practices, but I feel better than Day One. I think I feel pretty good about my progress and, you know, just ge...

*Photo from the Ottawa Sun*     The trade shuffle is back. The Ottawa Senators have acquired LW Zach Sanford from the St.Louis Blues in exchange for C Logan Brown and a conditional 4th round draft pick in 2022, according to both teams. The Blues receive the draft pick if Brown plays in at least 30 regular season games this season.    Ottawa GM Pierre Dorion talked about the acquisition of Sanford, saying that "We expect Zach's addition to prove beneficial for us in a number of ways. He's a big man who skates well, a power forward who plays with energy and a former Stanley Cup winner. As someone who's had a 16-goal season, he's very capable of contributing offensively too."    Last season, Sanford tallied 10 goals and 6 assists for the Blues in regular season play, with a -13 plus/minus in an ATOI of 14:53, playing in 52 regular season games. In 4 playoff games, in which the Blues got swept by the Colorado Avalanche, Sanford was held off the score sheet...

*Photo from the Hockey Writers*     The up and coming number one goalie of the future in Los Angeles is back for a few more years. The Los Angeles Kings and G Calvin Petersen have agreed to a 3 year, $15 million extension, with a $5 million AAV, according to Pierre Lebrun of TSN. The deal will kick in next season, as Petersen is finishing up his current contract this season.    When the deal does kick in, Petersen has a $3 million signing bonus in the first season, followed by $4 million the following season. His extension also carries a modified no trade clause all 3 seasons, and he will become a UFA when the deal is completed. He's scheduled to make just over $858,000 this season.    Petersen posted strong numbers in his first season as the top goalie in Los Angeles, posting a 9-18-5 record, with a 2.89 GAA and a .911 save percentage, appearing in 35 games, starting 32 of them. He did not record a shutout last year, with the Kings also missing the playoff...

*Photo from the Seattle Times*     Release the Kraken. They're here now. Normally, you won't be seeing preseason game recaps on this site, but this was no ordinary preseason game. It was the inaugural game for the Seattle Kraken, their first game as a team. Riley Sheahan scored, Morgan Geekie scored twice, and the Kraken defeated the Vancouver Canucks 5-3 on Sunday night.    The first starting lineup for the Kraken featured Jaden Schwartz, Jared McCann, and Jordan Eberle as forwards, with Mark Giordano and Jamie Oleksiak on defense, and Philipp Grubauer starting in goal. Grubauer made the first save in Kraken history with 14:04 remaining in the first period, and Seattle started the game with an early 7-1 advantage in shots on goal.    Kraken CEO Todd Leiweke said of opening night that "Tonight is validation that our market isn’t just the Seattle DMA. The amount of people wearing Kraken merchandise, the sincere enthusiasm, there couldn’t be a better pla...

*Photo from NHL.com*     One of the best defensemen in Buffalo has a new contract. The Buffalo Sabres and left shot D Rasmus Dahlin have agreed on a 3 year, $18 million contract, with a $6 million AAV, according to an announcement made by the team. Dahlin was an RFA.    The signing of Dahlin, plus Henri Jokiharju earlier in the offseason, brings the Sabres over the $60.24 million cap floor, as they are entering training camp with just over $63 million committed to the team this season, if they don't make any more moves. With Dahlin signed, the Sabres now have all of their RFA's re-signed for the upcoming season.    Last season, Dahlin registered 5 goals and 18 assists for the Sabres, with a ghastly -36 plus/minus in an ATOI of 21:36, playing in all 56 regular season games, as the Sabres did not qualify for the playoffs. After Don Granato became the head coach toward the end of the season, Dahlin saw a dramatic uptick in ice time, and seemed to thrive under ...

*Photo from The Athletic*     The last remaining RFA from the St.Louis Blues is back under contract. The Blues and C Robert Thomas have agreed to a two year, $5.6 million deal, with a $2.8 million AAV, according to an announcement made by the team.    Thomas was the last RFA who still had not been signed by the Blues, as his entry level contract had expired at the end of last season. Now, with training camp opening up across the NHL, including in St.Louis, the Blues were able to reach an agreement with Thomas, who will still be an RFA when this contract expires.    Last season, his 3rd in the NHL, Thomas tallied 3 goals and 9 assists, with a +1 plus/minus in an ATOI of 13:36, suiting up in 33 regular season games last season. In 4 playoff games, he had no goals and 3 assists, as the Blues were swept by the Colorado Avalanche.     As training camp has begun, Thomas might miss some time in the beginning of camp due to just getting his contract ...

*Photo from USA Today*     The biggest young star in the NHL is officially back. The Minnesota Wild and LW Kirill Kaprizov have agreed to a 5 year, $45 million deal, with a $9 million AAV, according to an announcement made by the Wild. Kaprizov was an RFA, and, after much publicized following his contract talks, he's finally back in a Wild jersey.     Asked about his new contract, Kaprizov said "I'm so happy. It's good for me, it's good for the team. Now I just want to play hockey and to be with my teammates and just play hockey. I talked to my teammates tonight, everybody texted me and said, 'Congratulations, we're happy.' And I texted back, 'Thank you, I'm happy too.'"    In his rookie season, Kaprizov scored 27 goals and added 24 assists, with a +10 plus/minus in an ATOI of 18:18, being every bit of what was promised, playing in 55 regular season games last season. In 7 playoff games, Kaprizov two goals and one assist, with the Wild ...

*Photo from Sportsnet*     The goalie who claimed he'd win the Vezina trophy in honor of Matiss Kivlenieks has just gotten paid. The Columbus Blue Jackets and G Elvis Merzlikins have agreed to a 5 year, $27 million extension, according to an announcement by the team. He'll earn $5.4 million annually when the deal starts in the 2022-2023 season, as he's finishing his entry level deal this year.    Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen said "Goaltending is a position of strength for our team, and Elvis Merzlikins has been an important part of that over the past two seasons, so we are very excited to have agreed to terms on a contract extension that will keep him in Columbus for at least the next six years. He is big, athletic and has a tremendous passion for the game, and we believe he will be an integral part of our success in the coming years."    Last season, Merzlikins appeared in 28 games for the Blue Jackets, getting the start in 23 of them. He posted a...

*Photo from Sportsnet*     One of the great faces of the New Jersey Devils is hanging up the skates. C Travis Zajac has signed a one day contract with the Devils and has announced his retirement after 15 seasons in the NHL, according to both the Devils and Zajac.     Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald said in a statement that "Everyone in the NHL appreciates that Travis Zajac's work ethic and style of play were reflective of the New Jersey Devils. His training, discipline, and focus rubbed off on every player who walked into that locker room over his 15-year career."    Despite retiring from hockey, the Devils also subsequently announced that Zajac will be remaining with the team, as he will join the team in an on and off ice player development and consulting role, and he will also work to grow youth hockey in New Jersey. Zajac played for the Devils in all but 13 regular season games and 14 playoff games after being traded at this year's trade deadline to t...

*Photo from NHL.com*     After playing 12 seasons in the NHL, C Zack Smith has announced his retirement, according to Ian Mendes of The Athletic. Smith retires after playing 11 seasons with the Ottawa Senators, and one season with the Chicago Blackhawks. He did not play in the 2021 season.    Smith told Mendes that "There were definitely a bunch of different factors that went into it. And I don't want to sound like I was taking it for granted or that I didn't appreciate the life that hockey has given to me, but my heart wasn't into it the last couple of years. I guess I was a little jaded in some ways. You're playing well and then you learn the business side of it."    The last season Smith played was 2019-2020 with the Blackhawks, scoring 4 goals and adding 7 assists, with a +2 plus/minus in an ATOI of 11:47, playing in 50 regular season games, as the Blackhawks did not qualify for the playoffs. His last game was on February 12, 2020, before undergoin...

*Photo from Yahoo! Sports*     With training camp starting up soon, and the beginning of the 2021-2022 regular season right around the corner, the NHL is estimating huge vaccination marks leaguewide. NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said in an interview that he is estimating approximately 98% of the league to be fully vaccinated by the start of the season, according to Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff.    If the 98% number holds true, as Daly said, that would leave about 10 to 15 players across the entire league that wouldn't be fully vaccinated. Those players will be subject to stricter Covid-19 protocols then fully vaccinated players, and they could lose paychecks for any day they have to miss team activities, should they test positive or be considered a close contact.    Daly was discussing the high vaccination rate leaguewide, and the protocols for vaccinated vs unvaccinated players, saying that "I think that's been an incentive and a motivator for mos...

*Photo from The Athletic*     A promising young member of the Edmonton Oilers just got another year in town. The Oilers and RW Kailer Yamamoto have agreed to a one year, $1.175 million deal, according to the Oilers. Yamamoto was an RFA.     After a strong 11 goal season in 2019-2020, Yamamoto took a bit of a step back last season, scoring 8 goals and adding 13 assists, with a +9 plus/minus in an ATOI of 16:22, playing in 52 regular season games. In 8 playoff games, Yamamoto has just one assist, his only playoff action.    Yamamoto, chosen with the 22nd overall pick, a first round choice, in 2017 by the Oilers, has 20 goals and 32 assists, with a +18 plus/minus in an ATOI of 15:59, suiting up in 105 career regular season games, split between 4 years. He made his debut the season immediately after he was drafted, playing in 9 games in the 2017-2018 season.    Oilers GM Ken Holland spoke about having good youth this offseason, saying that "Part ...

*Photo from the Montreal Gazette*     One of the longest tenured defensemen in the NHL is heading back to where his career began. The New York Islanders and left shot D Zdeno Chara have agreed to a one year deal, according to Kevin Weekes of NHL Network. Financial terms have not been disclosed. The Islanders have confirmed the deal.     It's a return to Long Island for Chara, who spent the first 4 years of his storied NHL career in an Islanders uniform. During his tenure with the Islanders, Chara has 6 goals and 23 assists, with a -61 plus/minus in an ATOI of 21:31, playing in 231 regular season games. He'll return to Long Island as they open up a new arena this season, UBS Arena in Belmont Park.    Chara said of coming back to the Islanders that "It's kind of a full circle. Who would have known this would work out the way it did after 20-something years. I'm certainly very honored and humbled to be an Islander again. Obviously, the organization w...

*Photo from The Athletic*     San Jose Sharks forward Evander Kane has gone public about accusations against him that he gambled on NHL games. The forward appeared on ESPN's Outside The Lines, where he expressed his belief that he will be cleared during the NHL's investigation of those accusations.    Kane told ESPN's Linda Cohn on Outside The Lines that "Obviously the accusations are incredibly false. It's unfortunate that transpired, and it's unfortunate that those false allegations were made. I understood the magnitude of them immediately. I know they're not true. I know none of what she was saying was true. I was very confident, comfortable with knowing that I was going to be exonerated and am going to be exonerated of those allegations."    The accusations were first levied by Kane's wife Anna, on Instagram in July. At the time, Kane immediately denied them, as he still does now, and the NHL announced an investigation will take place eff...

*Photo from Editor In Leaf*     The next NHL Heritage Classic has officially been set in stone. The Toronto Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres will square off in the 2022 Heritage Classic on March 13, 2022, according to an official announcement made by the NHL on Thursday morning.    NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement that ""We are excited to announce that we will be presenting another Tim Hortons Heritage Classic this season. When the Toronto Maple Leafs meet the Buffalo Sabres at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton, we again will honor Canada's preeminent role in the history of our game while renewing a great and longstanding NHL rivalry. In addition, by inviting the first U.S.-based team to a Heritage Classic, we will celebrate the greater Golden Horseshoe region as the home of so many fans of both the Leafs and Sabres."    The game will be played at Tim Horton's Field in Hamilton, Ontario, which is the home of the Hamilton Tiger Cats of the CF...

*Photo from NHL Rumors*     After waiting it out in free agency for a while, Tyler Bozak is staying put. The St.Louis Blues and Bozak have agreed to a one year deal worth the veteran minimum of $750,000, according to the team. There are performance bonuses in the contract that can push the AAV all the way to $2 million, according to Cap Friendly.     Not only is Bozak playing for the Blues on the veteran minimum, but he is taking a significant pay cut from his last contract in order to stay in St.Louis. For reference, his last contract had a modified no trade clause, and had a $5 million AAV on it. He had been a UFA from July 28 all the way until Tuesday.    Last season, playing just over half the season, Bozak had 5 goals and 12 assists, with a -3 plus/minus in an ATOI of 14:55, playing in 31 regular season games for the Blues, missing 25 games due to injury. In 4 playoff games, Bozak had one goal and one assist, as the Blues were swept by the Colorad...

*Photo from Yard Barker*     Marcus Sorensen's NHL career is over. Sorensen will return to his native Sweden to play for Djugardens IF, a team in the Swedish Hockey League, according to Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports. Sorensen confirmed the news on his twitter.    This isn't the first time that Sorensen has played for Djugardens in his NHL career. After being drafted by the Ottawa Senators, he played for Djugardens for several years after he was drafted, which led to his rights expiring from the Senators. He ultimately signed an entry level deal with the Sharks in 2016, and just finished a two year, $3 million deal.    Sorensen said on his Twitter "Thank you San Jose Sharks for 5 great seasons. Thanks to all the staff/trainers that meant a lot to me during this time.  And a big thank you to the fans in San Jose, will miss playing in front of you in SAP center!"    Last season, Sorensen had a weak point total, scoring just on...

*Photo from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette*     Last season was a season of almost for the New York Rangers. The year they were supposed to emerge from a very quick rebuild and jump right back into playoff contention, with the stars seemingly aligned. Yeah, that didn't happen. They sputtered to the tune of a 27-23-6 record, finishing in 5th place in the MassMutual East Division. That reality, plus what they've done this winter, leads me to believe that they are one of, if not the biggest wild card in all of hockey.     First though, we have to look at what they've done this offseason. They changed their identity, from agile and offensive to grit and veteran based. Forwards Ryan Reaves, Greg McKegg, Sammy Blais, and Barclay Goodrow were added to boost the bottom six, and defensemen Patrik Nemeth and Jarred Tinordi added to bring more grit on defense. Blais came at the cost of scorer Pavel Buchnevich, traded to the Blues in exchange for Blais.     It w...

*Photo from Sportsnet*     The best player on the Pittsburgh Penguins will miss the start of the season. The Penguins announced that C Sidney Crosby has undergone successful wrist surgery and will miss 6 weeks, according to Penguins GM Ron Hextall.     Hextall said "The conclusion that we came to was that this procedure was the best way to proceed. I think we all, including Sid, wish we had known this a month or two months ago. It would've been great. But we are where we are, and I think on the positive side, we have four weeks until we play a regular-season game."    The procedure requires Crosby to be out a minimum of 6 weeks, with the potential for a longer absence if things don't go as planned in recovery. If he were to miss the minimum, he would still miss the start of the regular season, which for Pittsburgh is on October 12, 5 weeks away. The soonest he would be able to return is October 23, against the Tampa Bay Lightning.    Crosby w...

*Photo from Canes Country*     With the Carolina Hurricanes in a cap crunch after landing Jesperi Kotkaniemi, they just freed up the cap space they needed, but it comes at the cost of the defense. Hurricanes left shot D Jake Gardiner will undergo back and hip surgery and will likely miss the 2021-2022 season, according to GM Don Waddell.    Gardiner is due just over $4 million annually in his contract, which runs through 2022-2023. As he will likely miss the season, the Hurricanes will be placing him on LTIR, which saves them money against the cap, thus clearing the cap space needed to fit in Kotkaniemi. Waddell did not say when the surgeries will take place.    Waddell said in a press conference that "We won't be in a tight cap situation. Gardiner, who's going to have back and hip surgery here, is not going to be ready to go this year. So we had cap space available knowing that he'll go on LTIR."    Last season, his 10th in the NHL, Gardiner...

*Photo from the Ottawa Sun*     In an attempt to lock up the young core for years to come, the Ottawa Senators have finalized a part of the puzzle. The Senators and C Drake Batherson have agreed to a 6 year, $29.85 contract, with a $4.975 million AAV, according to Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. A key part of the Ottawa resurgence is back after being an RFA since the start of free agency.    Last season was the first full season Batherson has spent in the NHL, after spending parts of the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 seasons in the NHL, mostly as an injury call up, playing a total of 43 games across both of those seasons, spending most of his time with the Senators AHL affiliate, the Belleville Senators.    Ottawa GM Pierre Dorion said "Drake represents an integral component of our future at forward. Dating to his first pro season, he has steadily progressed to the point where he is now widely recognized as a bonafide top line NHL winger. He possesses...

*Photo from The Athletic*     A young breakout star for the Philadelphia Flyers has been locked up for a while to come. The Flyers and LW Joel Farabee have agreed to a 6 year, $30 million extension, with a $5 million AAV, according to the team. His extension will start in the 2022-2023 season, as he has one year remaining on his entry level contract.    Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher said "We consider Joel to be a key piece of our core moving forward and we're very happy to have him signed to a long-term extension. In a short amount of time, Joel has proven to be one of the brightest young talents in the NHL. His hockey IQ, skill set and passion for the game have all contributed to his early success and we feel that there's tremendous upside to his game yet. He plays a 200-foot game and has earned the trust and respect of his coaches, management and all of his teammates."    In his second season in the NHL, Farabee had a breakout season, notching 20 goals an...

*Photo from Sports Illustrated*     The replacement for Jesperi Kotkaniemi is now official. The Montreal Canadiens have acquired C Christian Dvorak from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for a 2022 first round draft pick, and a 2024 second round draft pick, according to an announcement made by the Canadiens.     Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin addressed letting Kotkaniemi walk in regards to Dvorak, saying "You know, this amount of money on a one-year deal for a player who should be making a lot less, it could affect our future. We have a structure or salary cap that we need to work with, and we have some young players coming through that we want to keep. So it put us in a situation where we had to make a decision what works best for our team now and moving forward, and being able to acquire Christian Dvorak certainly made our decision easier."    The Canadiens had two first round picks, one they own, and one they acquired from the Carolina Hurricanes after no...

*Photo from Sportsnet*     One of the biggest faces on the St.Louis Blues defense is staying around for a long time. The Blues and right shot D Colton Parayko have agreed to an 8 year, $52 million extension, with a $6.5 million AAV, according to the team.    Blues GM Doug Armstrong said of Parayko that "We drafted and developed Colton and now having him under contract for the next nine seasons is great for our organization. Having Colton, Torey Krug and Justin Faulk under contract long term gives us a strong and reliable defensive core for the foreseeable future."    Parayko is on the last season of a deal he signed with the Blues in 2017, which pays him $5.5 million annually. His new extension kicks in at the start of the 2022-2023 season, and has a no trade clause for the first 6 seasons of the deal, with a modified no trade clause in the final two seasons. The deal expires at the end of the 2029-2030 season.    Last season, in the short re...

*Photo from Blackhawk Up*     The longest tenured active defenseman in Chicago will be around for a little while longer. The Chicago Blackhawks and right shot D Connor Murphy have agreed to a 4 year, $17.6 million extension, with a $4.4 million AAV, according to the team.     Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman said "When we acquired Connor in the summer of 2017, we had visions of him growing as both a player and leader in our organization for many years. He has transformed into a defenseman capable of matching up with the opponents' best players and someone we trust to help us preserve a lead in the final minutes. Connor's voice carries weight in our locker room as a veteran presence, and we're thrilled that his development and leadership will continue as a Blackhawk."    This season is the last of a 6 year, $23.1 million deal signed by Murphy, which the Arizona Coyotes first negotiated with him. The extension from Chicago kicks in at the start of the 2022...

*Photo from NHL.com*     After sitting out the 2018 Winter Olympics, the NHL will be sending their players back to Olympic competition. The NHL and NHLPA have agreed to a deal with the IIHF and the IOC to allow NHL players to participate in the Olympics, according to an announcement by the IIHF Friday morning.    NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said in a statement that "We understand how passionately NHL players feel about representing and competing for their countries. We are very pleased that we were able to conclude arrangements that will allow them to resume best-on-best competition on the Olympic stage."    There is a clause in the agreement that allows the NHL and NHLPA to pull out of participating in Beijing if Covid-19 conditions worsen, or if the NHL schedule is heavily impacted by cancellations of games due to Covid-19. The opt out deadline is in January 2022, according to Emily Kaplan of ESPN.    The players individually can also...