Pittsburgh’s offseason picture still has a major question hanging over it, and Erik Karlsson isn’t pretending otherwise.
The Penguins defenseman said today that he has not had any talks with the team about a new contract. Karlsson, who turns 36 and is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, is finishing out the eight-year deal with an $11.5MM AAV he signed in the summer of 2019. He also described the Penguins as “in a weird stage,” adding that they will “see how it goes this year.”
That uncertainty matters because Karlsson’s next move will likely be shaped by where Pittsburgh is headed. He has been a boost for some of the club’s younger players, but it’s hard to picture him wanting to spend the back end of his career on a team that doesn’t look like a real Stanley Cup threat.
The Penguins caught plenty of people off guard by reaching the playoffs last season, yet they still aren’t viewed as true contenders, even with Sidney Crosby in the lineup. Karlsson, though, still produced like a top-end defenseman a year ago, finishing with 15 goals and 66 points while logging 23:36 per game and running the team’s No. 1 power play.
If Pittsburgh slips this season, his name figures to surface more often in trade chatter as his UFA date gets closer.
Around the Metropolitan Division, Columbus is easing Damon Severson back into camp after shoulder surgery in April. The veteran Blue Jackets defenseman is in a yellow no-contact sweater, and Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reported that he’ll miss the team’s preseason games but is expected to be ready for the regular season.
Severson, 32, still has five years left on his $6.25MM AAV contract, which runs through the summer of 2031. Columbus is counting on him for a top-four role after he posted 32 points in 71 games and averaged 21:04 of ice time in 2025-26.
New Jersey also trimmed its camp roster after rookie camp wrapped up. The Devils released forwards Nathan Brown, Caelan Joudrey and Nathan Lecompte from their amateur tryout agreements. They also reassigned prospects Quinn McKenzie and Luke Wilfley to their junior teams, with McKenzie - a 2026 seventh-round pick - headed to the OHL and Wilfley - a 2026 sixth-rounder - bound for the WHL.
In Washington, Rasmus Sandin’s recovery remains on track. The Capitals defenseman tore his ACL late in the 2025-26 season and was originally given a six- to nine-month recovery window.
GM Chris Patrick said today, via Sammi Silber of The Hockey News, that the team still expects him to be working within that timeline. Patrick added that the club is “hopeful based on how he looks that maybe we’re closer to the earlier part of that” window.
Sandin, 26, ranked fifth among Washington defensemen in ice time last season at 19:12 per game, including 1:25 on the penalty kill, and he finished with five goals and 29 points in 73 games.
In Other News...
Blue Jackets Fans Finally Have The Full Camp And Preseason Picture
The Blue Jackets finally have the kind of late-summer schedule their fans can circle on the calendar. Training camp opens Sept. 17, and the club has laid out a full run of practices through Sept. 24, giving Columbus a clear first look at how the roster will start to take shape before the regular season conversation really gets going. There will even be a couple of chances for fans to watch in person on Sept. 19, which should make the first stretch of camp feel a little more real.
Preseason follows quickly behind, beginning Sept. 21 against the Detroit Red Wings and rolling on through Sept. 26 with games against the Buffalo Sabres and Pittsburgh Penguins. The camp roster is set at 55 players, divided into two practice groups, so there will be plenty of names to sort through as the Jackets start evaluating who can make the strongest early impression. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Face A Costly Adam Fantilli Standoff
Adam Fantillis next contract has become one of the more delicate topics around the Blue Jackets as the sides work through what his long-term fit in Columbus should look like. The conversation is not just about money, but about structure, with the club weighing whether to take a shorter bridge approach or lock in a longer deal for a player it expects to be a centerpiece.
For now, Fantilli has not been at training camp while the talks continue, which only adds urgency to a negotiation that already carries plenty of risk for both sides. Young NHL stars have pushed teams to choose between short-term flexibility and the chance to buy into future value, and Columbus is trying to find that balance without letting the process drag into a bigger distraction. [Read more 🡒]
Carson Soucys Blue Jackets Chance Just Got Much Tougher
Carson Soucy came to Columbus on a professional tryout with a simple goal after a difficult previous season: show enough in camp to turn the invite into a contract. For a veteran trying to reset his career, the Blue Jackets made sense as a landing spot, but the runway to prove himself is now shorter than it used to be.
The new NHL collective bargaining agreement has cut into how much preseason exposure veterans on PTOs can get, and that makes every shift more valuable for Soucy and the other non-roster players trying to stick. Rick Bowness has already acknowledged how tough that is on evaluation, saying hed like more chances to see PTO players in action and that the current setup leaves too little room to make a real decision. [Read more 🡒]