Yesterday was the final day to place players on waivers before rosters have to be at the 23 man limit and teams compliant with the salary cap today at 4 pm CST. To that end, the Dallas Stars placed defensive prospect Mattias Backman on waivers with the intention of assigning him to the Texas Stars, should he remain unclaimed.
NHL rosters must be submitted to league by 5 p.m. ET tomorrow. All teams must be cap compliant by then.
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) October 10, 2016
Here’s your annual reminder that players claimed off of waivers are required to be placed on NHL rosters immediately. With so many teams trying to become compliant in advance of the season start, many teams will wait until this last day to put valued players on waivers to sneak them through, with fewer teams in a position to add a roster player via waivers.
In other Stars player news yesterday, Tyler Seguin skated in practice Monday morning and looks to be a go for Opening Night on Thursday.
Stars general manager Jim Nill also signed Lauri Korpikoski to a one-year, $1 million contract to add some forward depth. The move is likely a response to the setback suffered by Ales Hemsky as he recovers from a groin injury. Hemsky is likely to miss Thursday’s game. Mark Stepneski has more on that move here.
The Hockey News has Dallas going to the Stanley Cup Finals, but still thinks the goaltending tandem could use an upgrade. (Hockey News)
The Texas Stars season also gets started this weekend in Cedar Park on Friday vs the Charlotte Checkers (Carolina Hurricanes affiliate). (Texas Stars Weekly Update)
In other Texas Stars news, the goaltending in Cedar Park is set and 2014 Dallas Stars draft pick defenseman Miro Karjalainen was signed to an AHL standard player contract. (Hundred Degree Hockey)
As teams finalize their rosters in advance of the official start to the NHL season on Wednesday night, several RFAs are returning home:
*The Johnny Hockey drama is over as Johnny Gaudreau signed a 6-year, $40 million dollar extension with the Calgary Flames. (TSN)
*Tampa Bay Lightning RFA forward Nikita Kucherov is reportedly close to signing a bridge deal with the team that currently holds his rights:
Gaudreau gets a $3M signing bonus now and also scheduled for $3.5M SB in potential lockout year (2020-21). But AAV on 6 yr deal is $6.75M.
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) October 10, 2016
Sydney Crosby, fresh off his Stanley Cup and World Cup wins, will be out for the foreseeable future with a concussion. The Pittsburgh Penguins were already without goaltender Matt Murray, who suffered a fractured hand in the World Cup competition. (THN)
With the injury, could Crosby’s quest for his 1,000th career point be in jeopardy this season? Other NHL stars are closing in on some notable career milestones. See what other history could be made this season. (NHL)
Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Radko Gudas missed getting suspended earlier in the preseason on a questionable hit on New York Rangers rookie Jimmy Vesey. He did not escape justice a second time as he was given a 6 game suspension for this hit on Boston Bruins forward Austin Czarnik.
Which Western Conference team that did not make the playoffs last season can compete this year? (Today’s Slapshot)
The Winnipeg Jets parted ways with goaltender Ondrej Pavelec, going all-in with the younger duo of Connor Hellebuyck and Michael Hutchinson in the crease. (Arctic Ice Hockey)