NHL Player News

Wright is fully focused on the Kraken after his trade request didn't lead to a change of scenery this offseason, Josh Frojelin of Emerald City Spectrum reports Friday.

Wright's agent, Kurt Overhardt, told Frojelin that the center is fully committed to Seattle and that is where his focus is heading into the season. That doesn't necessarily rule out a trade in the future. Wright's development with the Kraken has been slow, and he's unlikely to begin the year higher than the third line. The Kraken will wait for a fair price, so this situation appears set to linger into the season, though the team may try to showcase Wright in a larger role to boost his value early in the campaign.

Buium agreed to an eight-year, $75.04 million contract extension with the Canucks on Friday.

Buium was a first-round pick by the Wild in 2024, and he appeared in 31 regular-season matchups with Minnesota last year before being traded to the Canucks in mid-December. Across 76 regular-season appearances between the two clubs last year, the 20-year-old racked up six goals, 20 assists, 55 blocked shots, 41 PIM and 28 hits while averaging 19:35 of ice time, and he'll be rewarded with a long-term contract extension before the 2026-27 campaign.

Bogosian (lower body) is slated to be available for the start of training camp, per Michael Russo of The Athletic on Friday.

Bogosian had two goals, six points, 18 PIM, 47 hits and 37 blocks in 41 regular-season appearances with Minnesota in 2025-26. The 36-year-old logged just 14:33 of ice time per game last year, which was his lowest average for a regular season since the start of his NHL career. Bogosian will likely enter the 2026-27 campaign as part of the third pairing, but he might end up occasionally serving as a healthy scratch.

Gustavsson is still recovering from his offseason hip surgery ahead of training camp, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports Friday.

While Gustavsson's teammates have moved past their injuries from late in the 2025-26 campaign, the netminder is still recovering from the procedure he underwent early in the offseason. The 28-year-old's recovery timetable isn't yet clear, and whether he'll be available for preseason action or the start of the regular season remains to be seen. Gustavsson lost out on playing time to Jesper Wallstedt late in the 2025-26 season, and Wallstedt will presumably have increased opportunities to earn the No. 1 goaltending job if Gustavsson is sidelined during camp, while Calvin Pickard will be available as a depth option.

Eriksson Ek (heel) has skated hard recently and is healthy ahead of training camp, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports Friday.

Eriksson Ek missed the Wild's final five postseason games due to a heel injury, but he's back with the team ahead of training camp. Eriksson Ek appeared in 70 regular-season matchups last year, recording 19 goals, 32 assists, 106 hits, 34 blocked shots and 32 PIM while averaging 19:05 of ice time.

Brodin (lower body) has been skating and is expected to be fine for training camp, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports Friday.

Brodin missed Minnesota's final six playoff games due to the injury. He had four goals, 18 points, a plus-19 rating, 16 PIM, 10 hits and 126 blocks in 62 regular-season appearances in 2025-26. The 33-year-old should enter the upcoming campaign with a top-four role, but he hasn't logged more than 62 games in a single regular season over the past four years, so don't be surprised if he ends up spending part of 2026-27 on the shelf.

Metsa signed a one-year, $900,000 contract with the Sabres on Friday.

Metsa is set to play out the second season of his two-year, $1.63 million contract in 2026-27, but before he signed this extension, he was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next summer. The 27-year-old had two goals, six points, a plus-16 rating, eight PIM, five hits and 31 blocks in 43 regular-season outings in 2025-26. Metsa is likely to make Buffalo's Opening Night roster, but he might not be in the lineup regularly.

Huberdeau (hip) will not be available for the start of the Flames' training camp, Eric Francis of Sportsnet reports Friday.

"Yes, he's feeling good and is without the pain that he used to have at all times, so that's the best part," said Calgary general manager Craig Conway, referring to Huberdeau's status. "Now it's just for him to feel 100 percent ready to go into physical contact, game-playing and all that. We believe it's just a matter of when, not if." Huberdeau has been skating, but there is no timeline for his return to game action. While there is no indication the 33-year-old winger will miss Opening Night, fantasy managers probably can't rule that out entirely. If Huberdeau were to miss any time, it could open the door for additional minutes for Yegor Sharangovich or Maxim Tsyplakov.

Melanson signed a three-year, $4.35 million contract with the Kraken on Friday.

Melanson was a restricted free agent this offseason, and he'll be available for the start of training camp after reaching a new contract. After making just one NHL regular-season appearance in the 2024-25 campaign, Melanson played in 36 regular-season games with Seattle last year. In 2025-26 at the NHL level, he recorded two goals, three assists, 189 hits, 32 PIM and 13 blocked shots while averaging 9:22 of ice time per game.

Tokarski will serve in a scouting role for the Hurricanes, the team announced Friday.

Tokarski played for six teams over 10 NHL seasons, logging 86 games with a 27-36-12 record, a .902 save percentage, a 3.08 GAA, and three shutouts. The backstop's only postseason appearances came during the 2013-14 campaign, in which he logged five games for the Habs.