The Los Angeles Kings are being linked to a few different names as the rumor mill keeps spinning, and one of the bigger ones involves Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Alexander Nikishin.
Zach Dooley reported that Elliotte Friedman said the Kings are among the teams interested in Nikishin. Auston Stanovich then pointed to the challenge in making that kind of move happen, saying, “Nikishin would be such a great get for LA. I just don’t see how they get that deal done, especially since it seems like CAR is dangling Nikishin to try and hunt a big fish like Hellebuyck.”
Elsewhere around the league, David Pagnotta of the Fourth Period said Nico Hischier is expected to land an extension in the neighborhood of five years and $60 million.
There’s also movement, or at least discussion, involving some of the NHL’s biggest names. Quinn Hughes and the Minnesota Wild are still exploring options, with Wild owner Craig Leipold suggesting the deal could be either three years or five years.
Two sources told that the Colorado Avalanche and Cale Makar have not opened extension talks yet, though the expectation is that a deal will eventually get done and make him one of the highest paid players. Neither side is viewed as concerned.
In Vegas, signs are pointing toward a Rasmus Andersson extension in the $7.5 million to $9 million range. The Golden Knights are working with $4.265 million in projected cap space with Alex Pietrangelo’s $8.8 million LTIR, and they could create more room by moving Adin Hill’s $6.25 million.
Other names are surfacing in trade chatter, too. The Buffalo Sabres are offering forward Jack Quinn, while one Western Conference team tried to trade for Islanders defenseman Alexander Romanov. The Maple Leafs are speaking with multiple teams about Morgan Rielly, and the Stars and Jason Robertson are still in talks as they try to find middle ground, according to Pierre LeBrun.
The Canadiens remain in the market for an impact forward. The Kings and Tampa Bay Lightning are also being considered as possible landing spots for Patrik Laine. The Utah Mammoth are among the teams interested in Kirill Marchenko, while the Canucks continue to have trade conversations involving Jake DeBrusk and Elias Pettersson.
Pittsburgh is another club to watch. The Penguins have cap space and are looking for a major addition, and they’ve been involved on Robertson. The Flyers, meanwhile, have received multiple draft-pick offers for Rasmus Ristolainen.
In Other News...
Flyers Add Another Piece As Briere Keeps Reworking The Bottom Six
The Flyers keep adding familiar bottom-six help, and Zach Aston-Reese is the latest name to join the mix on a two-year deal. It is another depth move for a team that has spent the day reshaping its forward group, with veteran Noel Acciari also coming in and Tyson Foerster already locked up on an eight-year extension that begins in 2027-28.
For Aston-Reese, the fit is straightforward: he brings a track record of bouncing around the league and filling a role on the lower lines, which is exactly the kind of stability the Flyers have been chasing as they rework the supporting cast around their core. The larger question now is how all of these additions sort themselves out in camp, because the Flyers are clearly not done tinkering with the bottom six just yet. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Quietly Added An Intriguing Young Forward Fans Will Want To Track
The Flyers made a low-profile addition with a familiar kind of upside play, bringing in forward Danila Klimovich on a one-year NHL contract. A former second-round pick by Vancouver, Klimovich has spent most of his career in the AHL, and his market opened up after the Canucks did not extend him a qualifying offer, leaving him free to sign elsewhere.
For Philadelphia, the move looks aimed first at building out depth for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, where an in-house swing on a young forward can be worth the wait. Klimovich has shown enough at the minor league level to keep him on the radar, and the next question for the Flyers is whether this is simply a sturdy AHL pickup or the kind of inexpensive bet that can turn into something more down the line. [Read more 🡒]
Predators Get Their First Real Test Of This Draft Class
Development camps are a useful reminder that the summer calendar belongs as much to prospects as it does to the veterans already penciled in for bigger roles. In Philadelphia, that meant another look at a group that included first-round pick Maksim Sokolovskii alongside returning young players Porter Martone, Denver Barkey and Alex Bump, all of them getting work in the same setting as the organization keeps building around its next wave.
Sokolovskii drew plenty of attention from the start, and not just because he was the Flyers top pick. The 2026 draft class is still in its early evaluation stage, which is why these camp skates matter so much, and the 6-foot-7 defenseman is already giving the club and its prospects a sense of how much size and skill he can bring to the blue line. For Philadelphia, the next question is how quickly that first impression turns into something more lasting once the drills give way to a longer summer of development. [Read more 🡒]