Connor Bedard’s summer has taken a major turn, and the Chicago Blackhawks will be without their forward for about four months after surgery on his left shoulder.
The injury surfaced when Bedard left practice on July 2, 2026, with visible pain, according to video shared by BHF. The Blackhawks later confirmed the timeline after the procedure.
Elsewhere around the league, the Utah Mammoth shut down any speculation on Barrett Hayton by matching the one-year, $4.775 million offer sheet he signed with the New Jersey Devils. Hayton now can’t be traded for a full year beginning July 8. He’ll be eligible to sign an extension after January 1, 2027, and he is scheduled to become a UFA on July 1, 2027.
Mammoth GM Bill Armstrong said there’s no bad blood in the aftermath, calling it part of the league’s business side. “It’s just business.
Players want to get paid, they want to make as much money as they can in their lifetime, we get it. There’s no hard feelings between us and New Jersey.
We called them and said we’re going to match. There’s no hard feelings between the club and Barrett Hayden…We have really good relationships with the players, the player’s agent, and also New Jersey.
There’s no hard feelings. It’s just doing business, and it’s a part of the NHL, it’s a part of the CBA.
We have to respect the process.”
The San Jose Sharks also added some depth on defense, signing Libor Hajek to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal pays $850,000 in the NHL, $350,000 in the minors, and includes $425,000 guaranteed.
Hajek, a left-shot defenseman, is listed at 6-3 and 209 pounds. He was a second-round pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2016 and has 110 career NHL games on his résumé, putting him in the mix for San Jose’s 6/7 spot.
Last season, Hajek played for HC Dynamo Pardubice in the Czech professional league and put up 13 points in 44 regular-season games as the club won the Czech Extraliga title.
The Montreal Canadiens rounded out the day’s signings by bringing in defenseman Reilly Walsh on a one-year, two-way contract.
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This Shocking NHL Money Move Could Change Everything For Coyotes Fans
A stunning contract offer sheet has already sent a jolt through the NHL, with Philadelphia making a bold run at restricted free agent Leo Carlsson on a five-year deal carrying an $18 million average annual value. For a league that has spent years watching top-end salaries climb carefully, the move instantly reset the conversation about what elite young talent can command and how far teams might be willing to stretch to land it.
For Coyotes fans, the ripple effect matters because these are the kinds of deals that can shape the market for the next wave of cornerstone players. If this is the beginning of a new spending tier rather than a one-off splash, the pressure on salary-cap planning, roster building and future negotiations is only going to grow, and the next star to cash in could be looking at a number that once seemed unthinkable. [Read more 🡒]