Free Agent Frenzy is just under one month away and TSN.ca keeps you up to date with all the latest news and rumours as the NHL off-season heats up.
Barzal, Trocheck on the trade block?
While the free-agent class has been seen as somewhat underwhelming this year, big names could still be on the move on the trade block.
Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia notes that the Montreal Canadiens had a significant trade fall through at the trade deadline that may have centred around New York Rangers centre Vincent Trocheck. He wonders if the Canadiens will circle back on the 32-year-old, who was heavily involved in trade rumours around the deadline.
Citing a league executive, Garrioch reports that the New York Islanders are exploring the trade market on star Mathew Barzal. He notes the Utah Mammoth are believed to have looked into a Barzal trade last summer, but ultimately opted against swinging for a blockbuster deal.
Barzal is signed through the 2030-31 season at a cap hit of $9.15 million, which will likely limit the number of suitors due to the cap space required to take him on. The 29-year-old posted 19 goals and 72 points in 81 games this season, bouncing back from an injury-plagued campaign that saw him finish with six goals and 20 points in 30 games in 2024-25.
Trocheck is signed through 2028-29 at a cap hit of $5.65 million. He posted 16 goals and 53 points in 67 games with the Rangers this season, falling short of the 20-goal mark for the first time since the shortened 2020-21 season, when he was with the Carolina Hurricanes.
Whether it’s pursuing Trocheck or another option, the Canadiens are expected to be aggressive in their pursuit of a second-line centre. General manager Kent Hughes said he will revisit the deal that fell through at the deadline and expand his search further.
“I’m going to call all 31 teams and look into a lot of things. As I discussed earlier, what will be available in June isn’t necessarily the same as what was available in March. It will be up to me to determine that,” Hughes said.
Skinner set to leave Penguins?
Josh Yohe of The Athletic reports that the Pittsburgh Penguins appear unlikely to re-sign goaltender Stuart Skinner, who is a pending unrestricted free agent.
Yohe believes it would take a long-shot option of the Penguins trading restricted free agent Arturs Silovs to see Skinner return. In that case, the team would be open to pairing Skinner with Sergei Murashov in net next season.
Skinner was acquired from the Edmonton Oilers, along with defenceman Brett Kulak and a draft pick, on Dec. 12 in exchange for goaltender Tristan Jarry and prospect Samuel Poulin.
The 27-year-old netminder had a 23-17-9 record last season with an .888 save percentage and 2.92 goals-against average split between the Oilers and Penguins. Skinner went 0-3 with an .873 save percentage and 3.08 GAA in the Stanley Cup playoffs as the Penguins were eliminated in the first round.
The 6-foot-4 netminder is coming off a three-year $7.8 million contract that carried a cap hit of $2.6 million.
Drafted 78th overall by the Oilers in 2017, Skinner has a career 121-71-23 record with a .902 save percentage and 2.77 GAA. He backstopped the Oilers to back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals in 2024 and 2025, going 21-16 in the process.
Silovs, 25, went 19-12-8 this season with the Penguins, posting a .888 save percentage and 3.04 GAA. He was acquired by the team last summer from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for forward Chase Stillman and a 2027 fourth-round pick.
Murashov, 22, made his NHL debut this season, going 1-1-2 with a .897 save percentage and a 2.56 GAA. He was 24-9-4 in 38 games with the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins, posting a .919 save percentage and a 2.20 GAA. The Russian netminder was selected in the fourth round of the 2022 draft.
Mantha also hitting the market?
Yohe also believes it unlikely that the Penguins bring back Anthony Mantha after his breakout season. He notes that Pittsburgh is not willing to commit long-term to Mantha, and while the team would be happy to sign him to a short-term deal, another team will likely go longer.
Mantha, 31, had a career-high 33 goals and 64 points in 81 games with the Pittsburgh Penguins last season. He added an assist in six playoff games before the Penguins were eliminated in the first round.
The 6-foot-5 winger spent the season playing on a one-year, $2.5 million contract after being severely limited by injuries in the previous two years. Mantha played a combined 31 games over the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons with the Vegas Golden Knights and Calgary Flames. He had seven goals and 17 points over those 31 games.
Selected by the Detroit Red Wings in the first round of the 2013 draft, Mantha has 179 goals and 367 points in 588 career games.
Mantha was listed at No. 10 on TSN’s Top 30 Free Agents board released on Monday. Skinner was listed at No. 15, while Penguins blueliner Ryan Shea also cracked the list at No. 21.
