Fantasy Hockey

Spezza will not be subjected to a contract buyout from the Stars, Chris Johnston of Sportsnet reports.

The Stars could save $2.5 million dollars over a two-year span by purchasing Spezza's contract, but GM Jim Nill apparently is not interesting in going that route. This is a nice consolation prize for the heady veteran after he experienced a 24-point drop last season and wound up with only eight goals and 18 assists over 78 games. Still, Spezza will probably need to make his way back into the top-six group to regain prominence in most fantasy setups -- even though it looks like he'll always be an option on the power play.

Hayden signed a two-year, $1.5 million contract extension with the Blackhawks on Friday, Satchel Price of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Hayden was a solid bottom-six contributor for the Blackhawks in 2017-18, notching four goals and 13 points while averaging 10:49 of ice time in 47 contests, but he excelled after being sent to AHL Rockford in March, totaling five goals and 17 points in 24 games. The physical 6-foot-3 winger should be a regular in the big club's lineup in 2018-19, but his limited role will likely prevent him from establishing himself as a viable fantasy option in most formats.

Tavares and the Islanders are attempting to negotiate a contract extension, Darren Dreger of The Sporting News reports.

Tavares had 37 goals and 47 assists in 82 games for the Islanders last season and is considered to be the top player available when free agency hits on July 1. The Islanders took a major step in the right direction in their attempt to sign Tavares when they hired Lou Lamoriello as general manager, as he will bring instant credibility to the team's front office. New York's biggest negotiating advantage is its ability to offer Tavares an eight-year contract if the two parties agree to terms before July 1 while other teams can only offer him a seven-year deal. If Tavares is unsigned by July 1, however, then odds are he will be wearing a different sweater in October.

Beagle is waiting to discuss contract negotiations until Washington sorts out its more pressing contract situations, Tarik El-Bashir of NBC Sports Washington reports.

The fourth-line center has expressed his desire to stay in Washington, calling D.C. his "home." However, Beagle recognizes that other players have priority in contract negotiations, like defenseman John Carlson -- who's coming off a career season -- and possibly even 2018 postseason breakout performer Devante Smith-Pelly. As free agency begins July 1, look for the air to clear regarding the roster construction of the Capitals in the coming weeks.

Kuznetsov indicated that it was his shoulder that was injured in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals and will not require surgery, Tarik El-Bashir of NBC Sports Washington reports.

Kuznetsov received a heavy hit from Golden Knights defenseman Brayden McNabb and did not return for the remainder of that game. The 26-year-old center was no worse for wear from the incident, however, returning for Game 3 and leading the league in playoff scoring with 32 points in 24 games -- including points in 14 of his last 15 games. The talented Russian has emerged as a superstar in the NHL and is likely to be an early selection in all formats following a career-high 27 goals and 83 points in the 2017-18 regular season.

Backstrom will not need surgery to repair two fractures in his finger, Isabelle Khurshudyan of The Washington Post reports.

Backstrom missed four outings due to injury, but was able to help the Caps close out the last nine games of the season and lift Lord Stanley's Cup, as he tallied 10 points in those final contests. Considering the center won't need surgery, it seems unlikely his finger issue will linger into the 2018-19 campaign.

Galchenyuk, whom the Coyotes acquired from the Habs in exchange for Max Domi on Friday, said he's excited about the prospect of playing the center position, Craig Morgan of NHL.com reports.

Numerous reports have suggested that Galchenyuk requested to work down the middle in Montreal late last season, but he didn't get that opportunity. In Arizona, he could slot in as the second-line center taking shifts after Derek Stepan or flanking his fellow American from the right wing on the top line. For what it's worth, Galchenyuk believes he'll play center after reading comments on social media speculating that he'll end up in that spot, so we'd take this news with a grain of salt until coach Rick Tocchet has a chance to corroborate the report.

Domi agreed to terms on a two-year, $6.3 million contract with the Canadiens on Saturday.

This is a classic bridge deal which will give Domi the opportunity to prove himself over the next two seasons and Montreal a bonafide top-six forward at a reasonable rate. Perhaps more importantly, Domi will be a restricted free agent once his contract expires, which means the Canadiens will have sole ownership of his negotiating rights following the 2019-20 campaign. The 23-year-old forward, who's totaled 36 goals and 135 points in 222 NHL contests to date, will hope a change of scenery will help him return to form and surpass the 50-point threshold for the first time since his 2015-16 rookie season.

Moulson is unlikely to have his contract bought out by the Sabres before the June 30 deadline, The Buffalo News reports.

Sabres GM Jason Botterill could save the Swords $666,667 by purchasing Moulson's contract, but that's not that much money in the grand scheme of things, and going that route also means that Buffalo would have to leave Moulson on the books through 2019-20 when he's technically only signed for one more season at $5 million. Either way, it's a tough pill for Botterill to swallow, especially considering that the winger was held pointless with a minus-9 rating over 14 games last season. The team could try to deal him and provide something more favorable to the acquiring partner in an effort to rid him out of the system, as he clearly doesn't fit into the rebuilding Sabres' plans.

Lucic is being actively shopped by the Oilers, The Athletic reports.

A power winger who's amassed 200-plus hits in five straight years following the lockout-shortened 2012-13 campaign, Lucic struggled offensively in his second go-around with the Oilers. He only managed 10 goals and 24 assists over 82 games and saw his power-play production dip by 18 points compared to his debut season with Edmonton in 2016-17. Montreal was said to be interested in acquiring Lucic two years ago, but nothing came to fruition in that regard, and besides, Habs GM Marc Bergevin just made headlines for trading Alex Galchenyuk in exchange for Max Domi, who needs a new contract as a restricted free agent.

Domi appears to be closing in on a contract extension with Montreal following his trade from Arizona on Friday, Pierre LeBrun of TSN reports.

Domi is a restricted free agent, and it would otherwise be considered poor form if his new club played hard to get regarding a new contract after he was acquired in a 1-for-1 swap for Alex Galchenyuk. There are rumblings that Domi -- who posted 45 points in a full season with the Coyotes last season -- might end up with a bridge deal, which generally favors the organization in the sense that it gets to sign a player for a couple of seasons at a fair price, while increasing pressure on said player to prove his worth right away. Then, if all goes well, a long-term extension could be granted.

The Canadiens traded Galchenyuk to the Coyotes in exchange for Max Domi on Friday, Arpon Basu of The Athletic Montreal reports.

This is a straight-up swap involving a pair of first-round draft picks. Galchenyuk spent his first six seasons in Montreal, accumulating 108 goals and 147 assists over 418 games. There's no reason to expect him to give up his power-play responsibilities now that he's bound for Arizona, and his playmaking acumen should really help invigorate an offense that ranked 28th last season -- which was one peg higher than Montreal's scoring rate. Galchenyuk has two years left on a contract that comes with an annual cap hit of $4.9 million. The prospect of Chucky playing alongside phenom Clayton Keller -- who posted 65 points as a rookie this past season -- should be really exciting to Coyotes fans.

Grzelcyk signed a two-year deal with the Bruins worth $1.4 million per year Friday.

Grzelcyk enjoyed a nice rookie season wherein he tallied 15 points in 61 games. The 24-year-old averaged 16:44 per contest in ice time, and saw 1:07 per game on the power play. With Zdeno Chara getting up there in years, Grzelcyk could be in for a bigger role next season.

Grant inked a one-year deal with Helsinki Jokerit (KHL) on Friday.

Grant's lone call-up came as part of the Wild's Black Aces, as he spent the year in the minors with AHL Iowa. A product of the QMJHL, the 29-year-old has made just seven NHL appearances (with Anaheim and Arizona) after being taking in the fourth round of the 2007 NHL Draft by Pittsburgh. The defender would likely need to have an outstanding campaign with Jokerit in order to earn another NHL deal in the future.

Orpik told Capitals beat writer Tarik El-Bashir that his pinkie finger "kinda fell off" following a slash during the Game 2 win over the Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Finals. The defenseman also suffered an unrelated hand injury earlier in the playoffs that might require surgery.

As for the pinkie, the digit was immediately stitched back on and Orpik played the rest of the series without issue. While Orpik may need to come up with a different plan to clear the water out of his left ear following swims this summer, we imagine the giant Stanley Cup sitting beside him on the next pool chair made it all well worth the while. We'll have to wait for a prognosis on the other hand injury, though, to see if surgery is required. No one can ever say hockey players aren't tough.

Kempny, a pending unrestricted free agent, has already met with Capitals GM Brian MacLellan to discuss a new contract, Tarik El-Bashir of NBC Sports Washington reports, adding that there's mutual interest in the two sides reaching a new deal.

The 27-year-old collected two goals and three assists over 24 games in the 2018 playoffs. While that level of production wasn't anything special from a fantasy standpoint, it's worth noting that Kempny scored once to supplement a pair of assists and 13 blocked shots to the detriment of the Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Finals. Coming up in the clutch at the most opportune time is sure to net Kempny a nice pay raise after he cashed out the balance of a one-year, $900,000 deal.

Carlson, a pending unrestricted free agent, expressed his desire to remain with the Capitals, though he added, "there's more to it than that," Tarik El-Bashir of NBC Sports Washington reports.

Reading between the lines, Carlson knows that he'll be able to command a substantial pay raise following his efforts in bringing the franchise its first Stanley Cup win. The savvy veteran added five goals and 15 helpers over 24 games of the 2018 playoffs after securing career highs in assists (53) and points (68) during the regular season. He cashed in $3.96 million annually over the life of a six-year deal that will officially expire July 1.

Green, who's recovering from cervical spine surgery, has been offered both one-year and two-year contracts to remain in Detroit, Craig Custance of The Athletic reports.

Since the Red Wings are a rebuilding team, it's unlikely that Green will be offered anything more than a two-year deal by July 1 when NHL free agency commences. If Green elects for the open market, he'll presumably be looking to attract a better team and garner a long-term deal. His desire to join a top-end team was evident towards the end of the 2018 trade deadline, when he chose to waive his no-trade clause after drawing interest from Washington and Tampa Bay. Green has said that he likes being in Detroit, but in that regard, it'll be worth monitoring Capitals defenseman John Carlson -- he's arguably the best offensive defenseman outside of Green as far as free agents are concerned, and if Carlson leaves Washington, Green could replace him as a former five-year player with the franchise.

Copley could be in line for a full-time NHL role with the Capitals in 2018-19, JJ Reagan of NBC Sports Washington reports.

Reagan's speculation stems from the emerging consensus that the Capitals will move current backup Phillip Grubauer at some point this offseason to clear salary cap room following Braden Holtby's commanding performance in the crease during Washington's Stanley Cup run this spring. Copley certainly has enough experience to fill a vacancy for the backup goaltender spot behind Holtby, but he had a sub-par 2017-18, posting a 2.91 GAA and .896 save percentage in 41 games with AHL Hershey, and there is the outside possibility that top prospect Ilya Samsonov could play well enough during the preseason to make the Capitals roster ahead of Copley (though given the Capitals' preference to take their time with Samsonov's development, this seems unlikely). With so many moving parts, it's difficult to say what 2018-19 has in store for the 26-year-old Copley, so prospective fantasy owners should monitor the situation as the offseason unfolds.

Grubauer has been placed on the trading block by the Capitals, The Washington Post reports.

Capitals GM Brian MacLellan said Wednesday that he's open to trading Grubauer. "It is just a personal thing for Gruby," MacLellan said. "I would love to have Gruby back. We've got two really good goaltenders. I just think he is at the point where he wants his own team and he wants to be the guy that is running the show for his own team and I respect that." The German netminder has been one of the most valuable backups in fantasy hockey the past two seasons, as he's compiled a 28-16-5 record (six shutouts) along with a 2.19 GAA and .924 save percentage over that span. Grubauer even overtook Braden Holtby as the No. 1 goalie at the onset of the Stanley Cup playoffs, but Holtby reclaimed the job by Game 3 against the Blue Jackets due to the former yielding eight goals over those first two games.

Budaj was dealt to Los Angeles on Wednesday in exchange for center Andy Andreoff.

Budaj wasn't going to get a real chance in Tampa at age 36, so this gives him a chance to get back on the ice as a backup in Los Angeles, where he was a strong option in 2016-17. However, with Jack Campbell sitting behind Jonathan Quick, Budaj will have to earn the No. 2 job to get the chance to post solid numbers again. Budaj is likely no better than a spot starter at this point in his career, and goalies of his caliber will almost always be available to fantasy owners on the waiver wire.

Mazanec has earned a one-year contract with the Rangers for the 2018-19 campaign, according to CapFriendly.

This deal was not heavily publicized. Mazanec is a depth goaltender who didn't get much more than a cup of coffee with the Predators after they selected him in the sixth round (179th overall) of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. The 26-year-old's career NHL totals are comprised of an 8-13-4 record, 2.97 GAA and .895 save percentage. Last season, he split time between AHL Hartford and Bratislava Slovan of Russia's Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).

Fleury said he'd like to finish his career with the Golden Knights, Sportsnet reports.

The 33-year-old netminder has one year remaining on a four-year deal that he had originally procured with the Penguins. Flower's cap hit is $5.75 million to rank 12th among goaltenders in the NHL. He'd been in vintage form through the first three rounds of the playoffs, posting a 12-3 record and otherworldly .947 save percentage, but a fourth Stanley Cup win wasn't in the cards for Fleury, as he posted an .853 save rate against the Capitals but never seemed to lose his composure. "It's weird, a couple of years ago I was told I was getting too old to play. I still love it," Fleury said. "Vegas gave me an opportunity to continue doing what I love and I wouldn't want to go anywhere else. I hope I finish my career here."

Subban was held out of the lineup during the Stanley Cup Finals due to a sprained ankle, David Schoen of the Las Vegas Review Journal reports.

With how well Marc-Andre Fleury performed this season, Subban was never going to get the start in the playoffs, which means his injury really didn't have much of an impact. There is little reason to think his ankle problem will prevent the 23-year-old from being ready for the 2018-19 campaign, in which fantasy owners can likely expect him to see 20-30 starts behind the Flower.