Daniel Alfredsson knows the reaction is coming. The former Ottawa Senators captain and franchise icon is heading to the Toronto Maple Leafs as an associate coach, and he said he understands why some Senators fans are going to bristle at the move across the Battle of Ontario.
“Yeah, I totally understand it,” Alfredsson told tsn.ca on a conference call from his home in Sweden.
“There’s no question. I think from talking to friends and other coaches as well, it’s different when you’re a coach.
I think when I felt that this is the career I want to go down, as a coach I knew I had to move at some point. I have to earn my way and get experience.”
Alfredsson is joining the staff of new Leafs head coach Jim Hiller, a former Red Wings defenseman and assistant coach.
The 53-year-old said the path he’s on is about building a coaching resume, even if that means leaving a place where he spent three years behind the bench. He thanked Senators owner Michael Andlauer, president of hockey operations, general manager Steve Staios and the Ottawa coaching staff for giving him the chance to work as an assistant coach.
“Now I’ve caught the coaching bug, which I’m very happy about,” he said.
Alfredsson initially came into the Senators organization in a player development role, and his contract expired after last season. He said the decision to move on was made after taking time to reflect once the year ended.
“After I finished the season, you know, took some time as always to reflect and I kind of made my mind up that I’m not going to come back to Ottawa,” he said. “I’m going to try to pursue and get different experiences.”
The news out of Chicago was much less upbeat for Connor Bedard. The Blackhawks announced Wednesday that the star forward is expected to be sidelined for four months after surgery to repair his left shoulder.
That timeline would keep Bedard out for more than a month of the 2026-27 regular season.
Bedard, who turns 21 on July 17, was hurt when he fell into the boards during an offseason on-ice workout last Thursday. It’s another shoulder setback for the young center, who also missed 12 games in 2025-26 because of an injury to his right shoulder, including the entire month of January.
Despite that interruption, Bedard put together the best offensive season of his career, finishing with 30 goals, 45 assists and 75 points. The assists and points were both team highs.
Bedard won the 2024 Calder Trophy after posting 61 points, including 22 goals and 39 assists, in 68 games as the NHL’s top rookie. In 219 career games since the Blackhawks took him first overall in the 2023 NHL Draft, he has 203 points on 75 goals and 128 assists.
In Utah, the Mammoth made sure Barrett Hayton isn’t going anywhere. The team matched the one-year, $4.775 million offer sheet the New Jersey Devils put on the forward Wednesday, keeping him in place for next season.
If Utah had let the offer sheet stand, it would have received a second-round pick from New Jersey as compensation.
“Barrett is a key piece of our team and important to what we are building here in Utah,” Mammoth general manager Bill Armstrong said. “He's strong in the faceoff circle, plays both sides of the puck and can play with anyone in our forward group. We are grateful to be able to count on Barrett in our lineup next season.”
Hayton, 26, had 25 points last season, scoring 10 goals and adding 15 assists in 67 games.
He said he’s eager to stay with the group he’s grown up with in the organization.
"I'm fired up to get back with my teammates and remain in Utah," he said. "I've been with this core group for my whole career and it's exciting that we have an opportunity to do some special things next season in front of the best fans in the NHL."
Hayton has 155 points, with 65 goals and 90 assists, in 358 career games with the then-Arizona Coyotes/Mammoth. The Coyotes selected him fifth overall in the 2018 NHL Draft.
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Red Wings Just Changed Everything About Their Goalie Picture
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Detroit also added another layer of insurance by bringing in veteran Daniil Tarasov on a one-year deal, giving the club some flexibility while the competition sorts itself out. Between Postavas rise and Tarasovs presence, the Red Wings suddenly have more moving parts than they did before, and the next question is how that mix settles once camp opens and the battle for the No. 2 job really gets going. [Read more 🡒]