Ottawa Senators
Touchdown Eklund, who’s coming into the primary 12 months of a three-year, $16.8M deal, offers the Senators a possible alternative for ahead Brady Tkachuk. Ottawa traded the four-time All-Star to the Florida Panthers on Monday, reuniting him together with his brother Matthew, a ahead for the Jap Convention squad.
Eklund, who hasn’t but made an All-Star Recreation, is not in the identical class as Brady Tkachuk but. That mentioned, he is an ascending participant.
Over his previous three seasons with the Sharks, Eklund, who turns 24 on Oct. 12, scored 48 objectives and tallied 108 assists. If he can keep that tempo in Ottawa, the promising ahead could develop into one of many faces of the franchise.
Grade: B+
San Jose Sharks
Led by star heart Macklin Celebrini (45 objectives in 2025, tied for No. 4 in NHL), the Sharks seem like on the upswing. Final season, San Jose missed the playoffs however went 39-35-8. That marked the primary time the Sharks completed above .500 because the 2018-19 season.
Would not it’s smarter for the Sharks to maintain the roster intact as an alternative of buying and selling key contributors? Eklund completed fourth on the group in factors this season (53, 15 objectives and 38 assists, in 78 video games). Halttunen, in the meantime, spent final season with the San Jose Barracuda (the group’s AHL affiliate), and Svoboda starred for Boston College. We’ll see how the remainder of their NHL careers go.
Touchdown the No. 9 choose is respectable compensation. Tankathon has the Sharks taking defenseman Daxon Rudolph, however he will not play instantly. He is dedicated to the College of Denver this upcoming season. (Gamers stay eligible for faculty hockey in the event that they have not performed within the NHL.)
Grade: B-
Washington Capitals
Bravo, Capitals senior vice chairman and normal supervisor Chris Patrick.
Kyrou, a one-time All-Star, stays one of many extra productive defensive forwards within the league. This previous season, he posted a career-best 44.6 Corsi Towards/per 60 minutes, per Hockey Reference. Corsi Towards measures pictures towards, misses towards and blocks for. A quantity under 50 signifies the opposing group did not possess the puck more often than not.
Kyrou supplied loads of worth on offense as nicely. He logged 378 factors (168 objectives and 210 assists) throughout his time in St. Louis.
Extra importantly, Kyrou helps the Capitals put together for all times after Alex Ovechkin. The ahead hasn’t retired, however the clock is ticking for him, as he turns 41 on Sept. 17. Buying extra ahead depth will likely be crucial for Washington as the long run Corridor of Famer nears the top of his profession.
Grade: A-
St. Louis Blues
After making the playoffs through the 2024-25 season, the Blues missed the postseason final season, going 37-33-12. This package deal is not sufficient to propel them again into championship rivalry.
McMichael is coming off an honest season for the Capitals, through which he had 46 factors (14 objectives and 32 assists) in 78 video games. Gastrin, in the meantime, performed for the AHL Hershey Bears.
On the brilliant aspect, the Blues now personal 4 first-round picks (Nos. 11, 15, 16, and 29) within the 2026 draft. They hope to discover a star amongst these picks.
Will No. 16 present one? In all probability not. Tankathon has St. Louis choosing Finnish heart Oliver Suvanto, who turns 18 on Sept 3. Count on him to spend time within the minors earlier than taking part in within the NHL.
Grade: B-
Chicago Blackhawks
The Blackhawks are clearly aiming to bolster the supporting solid of heart Connor Bedard, the No. 1 general choose of the 2023 draft. Chicago went 29-39-14 final season, lacking the playoffs for a sixth consecutive season.
Nonetheless, Chicago could have overpaid for Byram, who has by no means made an All-Star Recreation. Positive, the one-time Stanley Cup winner supplies championship pedigree, however his numbers in his last season with Buffalo have been unimpressive. He scored 11 objectives in 82 regular-season video games and posted a 58 Corsi Towards per 60 minutes (via Hockey Reference).
Including to its potential issues, Chicago might quickly be in a contract dispute with the 2019 No. 4 general choose. Byram is coming into the final 12 months of a two-year, $12.5M deal. He could also be seeking $10M on an extension.
Grade: B-
Buffalo Sabres
Byram might not be elite, nevertheless it’s not a assure that Buffalo will discover a direct affect participant with choose No. 4. Tankathon projects that the Sabres will take Swedish heart Viggo Bjorck with that choice. He could stay in his nation as an alternative of creating the leap to the NHL subsequent season.
Crevier, in the meantime, is an honest defenseman, however he’s not an improve over Byram. In 78 video games for Chicago final season, he scored seven objectives.
Grade: B-
