NHL Player News

Malek signed a two-year, two-way contract with New Jersey on Monday.

Malek spent the bulk of the 2025-26 regular season with AHL Utica, posting a 13-14-3 record with a 2.75 GAA and an .895 save percentage in 31 appearances. He also went 1-0-1 with a 1.91 GAA and a .930 save percentage in two regular-season outings with ECHL Adirondack last year. He will probably begin the 2026-27 campaign in the minors.

White agreed to terms on a two-year, two-way contract with Columbus on Monday.

White saw action in 23 regular-season games for New Jersey last year in which he notched four assists, 23 hits, 16 blocked shots and 14 shots on goal while averaging just 12:15 of ice time. In 107 career NHL games, the 29-year-old blueliner has yet to score a goal, chipping in 14 combined assists for the Devils and Ducks. White's move to Columbus won't make NHL ice time any easier to come by, as he figures to once again play the bulk of his minutes in the AHL.

Gastrin was loaned to Brynas IF of the SHL on Monday.

During the 2025-26 campaign with MoDo Hockey of Sweden's HockeyAllsvenskan, Gastrin had 10 goals and 24 points in 39 regular-season games before adding one goal and three assists in 13 qualification contests. St. Louis acquired the 19-year-old forward from Washington on June 23 as part of the trade that sent Jordan Kyrou to the Capitals.

Gustafsson signed a one-year, $850,000 contract with the Penguins on Sunday.

Gustafsson was dealt to Pittsburgh from Winnipeg on Monday in exchange for Jack St. Ivany. The 26-year-old Gustafsson didn't appear in a game with the Jets in 2025-26, so he will probably begin the 2026-27 campaign with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. He has 149 regular-season games of NHL experience, though, so he should be a call-up candidate if he winds up starting the year in the minors.

Blomqvist landed a two-year, $1.75 million contract with Pittsburgh on Sunday.

Blomqvist didn't play in a game with Pittsburgh this past season, but he performed well with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, going 16-5-4 with a .913 save percentage and a 2.40 GAA over 26 outings. The 24-year-old is the No. 3 goaltender on the Penguins' organizational depth chart, so he may not see much time with the big club in 2026-27 on the condition that Arturs Silovs and Sergei Murashov are healthy.

Silovs agreed to terms on a one-year, $2.8 million contract with the Penguins on Sunday.

Silovs made 39 appearances in his first year with the Penguins in 2025-26, posting a 19-12-8 record, 3.07 GAA and .887 save percentage. The Latvian netminder will certainly have to prove himself in 2026-27 to earn a longer contract next year, which might be difficult if Silovs can't command more playing time than Sergei Murashov and Joel Blomqvist, the latter of whom the Penguins signed to a two-year contract Sunday.

Chinakhov inked a three-year, $18.75 million contract with the Penguins on Sunday.

Chinakhov was acquired by Pittsburgh from Columbus in December, which led to him getting a much bigger role with his new team. The Russian winger set new high-water marks in goals (21), assists (21), shots (140) and games played (72) during the 2025-26 regular season between the two teams. While Chinakhov didn't record a point in the 2026 playoffs, he had a strong end to the regular season, generating eight goals and 22 points over the final 18 games, so he has sleeper appeal heading into this coming season as a top-six player in Pittsburgh.

Mintyukov signed a five-year, $36 million contract with the Ducks on Sunday, according to PuckPedia.

With his new deal, Mintyukov is now the second-highest paid blueliner on the Ducks behind Jackson LaCombe. The 22-year-old Mintyukov appeared in a career-high 73 regular-season games in 2025-26, registering eight goals, 22 points, 79 shots, 112 blocks and a minus-3 rating. The 2022 No. 10 overall pick is set to be a staple in Anaheim's top four while seeing ice time in all situations for years to come.

Hunt signed a one-year, $900,000 contract with Minnesota on Sunday, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports.

Hunt contributed six assists, 19 shots on net, 43 blocked shots and 21 hits in 32 regular-season appearances with Minnesota in 2025-26. He will be in the mix for a depth role with the big club during training camp.

Stastney signed a one-year, $1.575 million contract with Edmonton on Sunday.

Stastney generated two goals, 10 points, 56 shots on net and 63 blocked shots across 66 regular-season outings between Edmonton and Nashville in 2025-26. He will provide the Oilers' blue line with some depth in the 2026-27 campaign, but he may not play regularly unless injuries occur.