Training camp brought a welcome sight for the Flyers on Thursday: Owen Tippett and Noah Cates both said they’re fully healthy after ending last season on the shelf.
Tippett’s return matters right away. He was a driving force in Philadelphia’s first-round win over the Penguins, using his speed and edge to tilt the series. Then came a hard stop in Round 2, when the 27-year-old missed all four games of the Flyers’ sweep at the hands of the eventual Cup champion Hurricanes because of internal bleeding and a sports hernia that required offseason surgery.
Cates also played a key role in that opening series, matching the team lead among forwards with four points in six games. His postseason ended a little later, though not by much. He sat out the final two games against Carolina with a lower-body injury, avoided surgery, and said Thursday he’s back to 100 percent.
The Islanders had a notable health update of their own. Pierre Engvall was on the ice with the first group on Day 1, according to Andrew Gross, after missing all of last season following hip and ankle surgeries.
The 6-foot-6 winger hasn’t played since April 2025, and his Long Island tenure has been rocky. He was waived before the 2024-25 season and hasn’t come close to consistently living up to the seven-year, $21MM deal he signed in 2023.
With four years still left on that contract, his health gives new coach Peter DeBoer a wing project to figure out. Engvall has 52 points in 154 games with the Islanders.
San Jose opened camp with two players already headed for the sideline. Per Sheng Peng, Quentin Musty and Kyle Keyser are expected to miss a couple of months with upper-body injuries.
Musty, the 26th pick in the 2023 draft, is the bigger name. The 21-year-old left winger has been working toward an NHL job and had been trying to build on his status as one of the organization’s more promising forward prospects.
Keyser’s absence matters too, even if he’s a depth piece, because it leaves the Sharks even thinner in goal behind Yaroslav Askarov and Alex Nedeljkovic.
Winnipeg also had a mixed injury report, with Danielle Bain relaying updates on two players. Defenseman Elias Salomonsson, a 2022 second-round pick who played 32 games last season as a shutdown presence and looks close to a roster spot, is aiming to return around the end of October after spring shoulder surgery.
Forward Walker Duehr is back on the ice after a lower-body injury, but there’s no timetable yet for the 28-year-old winger. Duehr is coming off a strong AHL season with Manitoba, where he posted 34 points in 62 games, scored 17 goals and 17 assists, and tied for the league lead with five shorthanded goals.
In Other News...
Sabres' Goalie Search Just Got More Interesting Than Fans Realized
The offseason goalie market had a little more intrigue than it looked from the outside, with Elliotte Friedman reporting on the 32 Thoughts podcast that the Buffalo Sabres and Florida Panthers both explored the possibility of landing Connor Hellebuyck from the Jets. Winnipeg was at least willing to listen, which fits the reality of how valuable a top-end goaltender like Hellebuyck is, but there was always a practical hurdle attached to any conversation about moving him.
The Jets were not looking at this as a simple futures deal, and that helped explain why nothing came together before training camp. Buffalo and Florida had offers on the table that centered on draft picks and players, but the discussions never crossed the line into an agreement, leaving Winnipeg with its No. 1 in place and the rest of the league still thinking about how hard it is to pry a goalie of that caliber out of Manitoba. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Suddenly Face A Worrying Core Contract Problem
Contract chatter around core players has become a familiar headache across the league, and the latest round of it has touched several teams at once. Detroits internal debate over Dylan Larkin showed how hard it is for management to weigh present value against long-term stability, while Minnesotas Quinn Hughes has already been trying to keep extension talk from becoming a distraction. For Winnipeg, the discussion has centered on Connor Hellebuyck, whose trade request put the Jets in a delicate spot and raised questions about how front offices handle star players once the relationship starts to fray.
Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff moved quickly to shut down the idea that any soft understanding was in place with Hellebuyck, but the broader picture remains messy because the club has been exploring trade options since the request was made. That kind of unresolved business is exactly what makes the Blue Jackets situation worth watching, too, with Zach Werenski and Kirill Marchenko both sitting in a contract gray area of their own. When a teams best players are not firmly locked in, every conversation about the future starts to feel a little more urgent. [Read more 🡒]
Quinn Hughes Just Made Minnesotas Biggest Offseason Question Even Tougher
Quinn Hughes has only deepened the attention around Minnesotas offseason by saying he is in no rush to lock in a contract extension, even while acknowledging the pull of eventually playing alongside his brothers. For the Wild, that keeps the spotlight squarely on one of their biggest decisions, especially with reports already pointing to an eight-year offer that would set a new standard for the franchise.
The timing only adds to the intrigue across the league, with other major names making headlines as teams weigh their next moves. For Winnipeg, the bigger lesson is familiar: when high-end talent is involved, front offices tend to stay patient and measured, even as the market keeps shifting around them. [Read more 🡒]