Auston Matthews will be named Team Captain on Wednesday
Chris Johnston: The Toronto Maple Leafs will have a press conference Wednesday morning at 11 a.m. to name Auston Matthews their 26th captain in franchise history.
Darren Dreger: Current Maple Leafs captain John Tavares fully supports the change to Matthews and he has been heavily involved in the overall process with Leafs GM Brad Treliving.
Gord Miller: “Not sure Tavares was “stripped,” sounds like he was consulted and stepped aside. I can think of at least one precedent: After Edmonton lost to the NYI in the 1983 SCF, captain Lee Fogolin decided it was time to pass the torch to Wayne Gretzky. Edmonton won the Cup the next year.”
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The Calgary Flames re-sign two
Puck Pedia: The Calgary Flames re-signed forward Adam Klapka to a one-year deal.
He’ll get $775,000 in the NHL, $100,000 in the minors with $165,000 guaranteed.
Puck Pedia: The Flames have re-signed defenseman Yan Kuznetsov to a one-year deal.
He’ll get $775,000 in the NHL and $100,000 in the minors
The New Jersey Devils re-sign Nolan Foote
New Jersey Devils: The Devils re-signed forward Nolan Foote to a one-year, two-way contract.
He’ll get $825,000 in the NHL, $150,000 in the minors with $200,000 guaranteed.
Foote missed most of last season with a lower back injury.
Evgeny Kuznetsov was dealing with rheumatoid arthritis and severe insomnia
Sammi Silber of The Hockey News: Former Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes forward Evgeny Kuznetzov had been struggling with rheumatoid arthritis and severe insomnia.
“I haven’t been able to make (my family) happy in the last couple of years. There were times when I didn’t even want them to come to the games,” Kuznetsov said, per a DeepL translation. “I wasn’t comfortable having my kids see my fail, I was worried about that.”
Evander Kane might need surgery
Bob Stauffer: Have heard there is a good chance that Edmonton Oilers forward Evander Kane won’t be ready for the start of next season.
It’s possible that Kane needs surgery and he could start the season on the LTIR.
NHL Rumors: Edmonton Oilers, and the Vancouver Canucks
Edmonton Oilers prospect Beau Akey is ready to return this season
Derek Van Diest of NHL.com: Edmonton Oilers prospect Beau Akey was limited to 14 games last season with the Barrie Colts after suffering a season-ending shoulder injury that required surgery.
The Oilers are going to be patient with Akey and they hope that he’ll be able to become a top-four NHL defenseman. He said mentally he’s ready to go and looking forward to starting his season with Barrie (OHL).