Okposo undergoes surgery
Bill Hoppe of Buffalo Hockey Beat: Buffalo Sabres forward Kyle Okposo had surgery on his right knee. Recovery is expected to take six weeks.
Okposo has three years left on his deal that carries a $6 million salary cap hit.
Red Wings sign second-round pick
Ansar Khan: The Detroit Red Wings have signed defenseman Albert Johansson to a three-year entry-level deal.
Johansson was drafted by the Red Wings 60th overall in the second round of the 2019 NHL draft.
Sharks UFA heading to the KHL
Kevin Kurz: San Jose Sharks pending UFA forward Lukas Radil has signed to play in the KHL next season. He didn’t record any points in 14 NHL games.
NHL and NHLPA working towards a new CBA
TSN: Darren Dreger said that CBA talks between the NHL and NHLPA have been intensifying. Before the season had been put on hold, the sides had done a lot of work.
“NHL clubs want to know what the salary cap is going to be for 2020-21, is it going to be in the low 80’s as many of us have speculated, that needs to be negotiated. The players want to know what the escrow future is, and what is the escrow stability plan, could it be 20 per cent for the foreseeable future, could it be more than 25 per cent, those are the conversations going on right now – the cap, escrow, hockey-related revenue – but they haven’t really gotten yet into what the terms will be in those talks.”
Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet:
Sources have said the NHL and NHLPA have been working hard on the CBA and they could be trying to get it done before they start playing.
notes: “The league wants long-term stability. The players want a cap on escrow, and word is that it is being considered. If the season does not resume, their hit would be 35 per cent. Even if there are games, they are looking at 27 or 28 per cent. I heard rumblings of a 20 per cent escrow cap over the next few seasons — others said they heard slightly less. A flat salary cap of $81.5 million for a few seasons is possible, too.”