Hoffman door not closed on a Blues return
Andy Strickland: Don’t believe that St. Louis Blues pending UFA forward Mike Hoffman has closed the door on possibly returning to the Blues.
He would need to consider signing a somewhat friendly deal if the Blues were to be able to make it work.
Last offseason he received a good amount of interest and the same is expected this offseason.
Coyotes interview Leach, schedule to talk to Van Ryn today
Craig Morgan: The Arizona Coyotes have interviewed Jay Leach (Providence Bruins – AHL).
Coyotes GM Bill Armstrong coached Leach in 2003-04 at Trenton (ECHL).
The Coyotes will be interviewing Mike Van Ryn (St. Louis assistant) on Monday. Van Ryn coached the Coyotes AHL team in Tucson in 2017-18 and was their player development coach in 2016-17.
Chynoweth can talk to teams
Elliotte Friedman: The Carolina Hurricanes have given assistant coach Dean Chynoweth permission to talk to other teams. He’s their only coaching staff member who has been given permission at this time.
Power thinking back to school
Adam Kimelman of NHL.com: Potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NHL draft said that he is leaning towards returning to the University of Michigan next season as opposed to going pro.
“I think right now I’m probably leaning more toward going back to school,” the 18-year-old defenseman told “NHL Now” on Friday. “It’s something I’d like to do, trying to get the true experience of playing college hockey. At the end of the day, it obviously depends on what the team wants and what everyone around me thinks is best. I don’t think there’s really a bad option, but I’d say I’m leaning a bit more toward going back to school right now.”
The Buffalo Sabres hold the No. 1 pick.
Lance Lysowski: “This will ultimately be the team’s call. They’ll take Power’s preference into consideration, but it’s all about what the GM and staff think is best for his development. A normal sophomore year at Michigan would help Power.”