The Off-Season So Far

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Update from post below: July 20th


Anaheim Ducks - Anaheim inked former Montreal captain Saku Koivu to a one-year deal. He will serve as the team's number two center next season. They also signed rugged defender Nick Boynton to a one-year contract after he played last year with the Florida Panthers. The Ducks lost UFA defenseman Francois Beauchemin to the Maple Leafs and the rights to blueliner Joe DiPenta, who signed with the Buffalo Sabres, after spending the last season overseas in Sweden. The club also re-signed UFA center Todd Marchant and RFA rearguard James Wisniewski to one-year deals.

Atlanta Thrashers - The Thrashers re-signed RFAs Colby Armstrong, Jim Slater and Kari Lehtonen to extensions. They also retained the services of farmhand RFAs Scott Lehman and Grant Lewis, while agreeing to terms with trade acquisition Tim Stapleton, formerly the property of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who came over in the Pavel Kubina deal. Atlanta signed free agents Anthony Stewart and Noah Welch as well. They still need to lock up RFA behemoth defenseman Boris Valabik to a new contract.

Boston Bruins - Boston inked UFA netminder Dany Sabourin, center Trent Whitfield and defenseman Drew Fata to one-year contracts. P.J. Axelsson, Manny Fernandez, Stephane Yelle and Peter Schaefer are still available on the open market as UFAs. RFA defenseman Matt Hunwick has filed for salary arbitration. Former AHLer Jeremy Reich signed with the New York Islanders.

Buffalo Sabres - The Sabres signed defenseman Joe DiPenta to a one-year deal. He played in the Swedish Elite League last season after being a member of the Anaheim Ducks for three years. Buffalo also re-signed agitator Patrick Kaleta who agreed to the Sabres' qualifying offer. UFAs Maxim Afinogenov, Dominic Moore, Teppo Numminen and Andrew Peters are still looking for new teams, and Clarke MacArthur's salary arbitration is coming up soon.

Carolina Hurricanes - The Hurricanes dipped into the free agent market for a pair of depth players. First they signed former Canadiens' grinder Tom Kostopoulos and a day later, inked hulking defender Andrew Alberts, who spent last season with the Philadelphia Flyers. Defenseman Dennis Seidenberg is still on the UFA market, while Tuomo Ruutu is taking the Hurricanes to salary arbitration. The team is interested in bringing back UFA Ryan Bayda.

Calgary Flames - The Flames have been quite busy during this off-season. They added some muscle with the signing of tough guy Brian McGrattan. He spent last season with the Phoenix Coyotes, but missed most of the year in the NHL's Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health Program. They also brought former Capitals' defenseman Staffan Kronwall and Jason Jaffray, from the Canucks' system, on board to increase the team's depth. Calgary locked up Jamie Lundmark to a new contract and claimed winger Nigel Dawes off waivers from the Coyotes as well. The Flames acquired the rights to prospect Keith Seabrook from the Capitals in exchange for future considerations. Warren Peters, who appeared in 16 games with the Flames in 2008-09, signed a one-year, two-way deal with the Stars. Todd Bertuzzi, Andre Roy and Rhett Warrener are still UFAs.

Chicago Blackhawks - The Blackhawks avoided a sticky situation by re-signing Troy Brouwer, Ben Eager, Colin Fraser, defenseman Aaron Johnson, outstanding rookie Kris Versteeg and standout offensive blueliner Cam Barker to new deals. The six players mentioned above had their qualifying offers mishandled by Chicago, but to their credit, the organization acted swiftly to ensure they remained with the team. Goaltenders Corey Crawford and Antti Niemi were also re-signed by the Hawks and they will compete for the backup role next season.

Columbus Blue Jackets - The Jackets re-signed star player Rick Nash to an eight-year contract extension. Columbus backup goalie Wade Dubielewicz signed the Minnesota Wild. They still have UFAs Christian Backman, Manny Malhotra, Michael Peca, Chris Gratton and Jason Williams available as unsigned players. Marc Methot has his salary arbitration coming up.

Colorado Avalanche - The big news from the Colorado camp this off-season was the surprising retirement of captain Joe Sakic. It was thought he would be returning for one more season, but he decided to call it a career after 20 years in the league. The club hopes to have his future replacement in top prospect Matt Duchene, who they signed to an entry-level deal. The Avs dealt Ryan Smyth to the Los Angeles Kings for defenders Kyle Quincey and Tom Preissing as well as the fifth round pick, to deepen their blueline corps. Colorado re-signed David Jones, Chris Durno, Matt Hendricks and Brian Willsie, as well as AHL goaltender Tyler Weiman. They also inked minor-league scoring threat Darren Haydar from Detroit's affiliate in Grand Rapids. However, the Avalanche lost UFAs Ben Guite (Nashville), Lawrence Nycholat (Vancouver), Tyler Arnason (New York Rangers) and Andrew Raycroft (Vancouver). Daniel Tjarnqvist and Cody McCormick are still on the market as UFAs.

Dallas Stars - Dallas signed minor-leaguer Warren Peters from the Flames to replace Chris Conner, who departed for the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Stars also put pen to paper with UFA defenseman Jeff Woywitka and re-signed RFA blueliner Mark Fistric to an extension. Brendan Morrison left via free agency for Washington. Joel Lundqvist, Mark Parrish, Darryl Sydor and Sergei Zubov are still available on the UFA list.

Detroit Red Wings - The Wings signed UFA defender Doug Janik and inked former Maple Leaf farmhands Jeremy Williams and Kris Newbury to strengthen their minor league roster. Detroit also re-signed Ville Leino to a contract extension. AHLer Darren Haydar left for the Colorado Avalanche. Jiri Hudler is going to salary arbitration and may end up in Russia if the Wings do not like the results of his hearing.

Edmonton Oilers - The Oilers re-signed UFA defenseman Jason Strudwick to a one-year pact, while bidding farewell to UFA forward Ales Kotalik, who agreed to terms with the New York Rangers. Liam Reddox turned down a qualifying offer and may play next year in Europe. They gave minor leaguer Chris Minard a new contract after he spent the past season in the Penguins' AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The Oilers also signed a trio of prospects, including goaltender Devan Dubnyk as well as defensemen Dean Arsene and Toni Rajala. RFA defender Denis Grebeshkov is filing for salary arbitration, while RFA rearguard Ladislav Smid is still working out a new deal with the team.

Florida Panthers - The Panthers lost blueliner Nick Boynton to the Anaheim Ducks and Anthony Stewart to the Atlanta Thrashers via free agency. UFA Ville Peltonen is still without a contract and may sign overseas in Europe. Steve Eminger was not tendered a qualifying off, but the team has not given up trying to re-sign him.

Los Angeles Kings - The Kings finally made their big move of the off-season, trading defensemen Kyle Quincey and Tom Preissing with a fifth round draft pick to the Colorado Avalanche for winger Ryan Smyth. They also re-signed 22-year-old rearguard Jack Johnson to a two-year deal. Derek Armstrong, Kyle Calder and Denis Gauthier are still on the market as UFAs.

Minnesota Wild - The Wild added goaltender Wade Dubielewicz to their roster, indicating that RFA netminder Josh Harding could be on his way out of the organization. Minnesota signed prospect defender Tyler Cuma. They lost forward Stephane Veilleux and defenseman Kurtis Foster to Tampa Bay via free agency, while Peter Olvecky left for the Nashville Predators. Offensive blueliner Marc-Andre Bergeron is still available on the UFA list for any team seeking a power play threat.

Montreal Canadiens - The Canadiens' roster facelift has continued. They added UFA Travis Moen from the Sharks and lured UFA defender Paul Mara, as well, who has spent the past three years with the Rangers. Montreal also signed Swedish Elite League forward Andreas Engqvist to a three-year, two-way contract. They lost shifty scorer Alexei Kovalev to division rival Ottawa and gritty forward Tom Kostopoulos agreed to terms with the Hurricanes. The Habs re-signed Kyle Chipchura, Guillaume Latendresse and Shawn Belle to one-year deals. Alex Tanguay, Francis Bouillon, Patrice Brisebois and Mathieu Dandenault are still UFAs.

Nashville Predators - The Predators came to terms with former Avalanche Ben Guite, and Peter Olvecky, who skated for the Wild last season, on new deals. Ville Koistinen is now a member of the Florida Panthers, while Scott Nichol and Jed Ortmeyer joined the San Jose Sharks. Radek Bonk and Greg de Vries are still testing the waters as UFAs.

New Jersey Devils - New Jersey inked goaltender Yann Danis to a one-year contract to serve as Martin Brodeur's backup next campaign. He appeared in 31 games last season with the Islanders. The Devils also locked up UFA defender Cory Murphy to a two-year deal. Bobby Holik announced his retirement, while Brendan Shanahan and Kevin Weekes are still on the UFA list.

New York Islanders - The Islanders signed John Tavares, the first overall pick in the 2009 draft, to an entry-level contract. They lost goaltender Yann Danis to the Devils this off-season. Andy Hilbert , Joey MacDonald, Dean McAmmond, Thomas Pock and Mike Sillinger are UFAs.

New York Rangers - The Rangers brought in Ales Kotalik from the Edmonton Oilers via free agency. They also signed Christopher Higgins, Ryan Callahan, Corey Potter and Brian Boyle to new deals. New York traded disgruntled forward Lauri Korpikoski to the Coyotes for Enver Lisin. The Blueshirts lost defenseman Paul Mara to Montreal on the free agent market. Mark Bell, Blair Betts and Derek Morris are on still UFAs.

Ottawa Senators - The Senators secured a big-time offensive threat with the signing of Alex Kovalev to a two-year contract. He may end up being the replacement for Dany Heatley if the Senators can move him. Minor-leaguer Drew Fata agreed to terms with the Boston Bruins. Mike Comrie and Brad Isbister are still UFAs looking for teams.

Philadelphia Flyers - The Flyers lost defenseman Andrew Alberts to the Hurricanes and goaltender Antero Niittymaki joined the Tampa Bay Lightning as free agents. Goalie Martin Biron and blueliner Lasse Kukkonen are the team's only notable UFAs.

Phoenix Coyotes - The Coyotes traded Enver Lisin to the Rangers for Lauri Korpikoski. They have signed Korpikovski to a two-year contract and re-signed defenseman Keith Yandle as well. Phoenix placed Nigel Dawes on waivers and he was snatched up by the Calgary Flames. They also lost enforcer Brian McGrattan to Calgary via free agency. Dmitri Kalinin and Ken Klee are UFAs, while the team is continuing to negotiate with RFA Scottie Upshall.

Pittsburgh Penguins - The Penguins inked veteran defenseman Jay Mckee to a one-year pact, but AHL forward Chris Minard decided to leave the team for the Edmonton Oilers. The Pens agreed to terms with Alex Goligoski on a three-year extension and they re-signed minor-leaguers Tim Wallace and Ben Lovejoy as well. Pittsburgh still has Phillipe Boucher, Miroslav Satan and Petr Sykora available as unsigned UFAs.

San Jose Sharks - The Sharks plucked grinders Scott Nichol and Jed Ortmeyer off the free agent market from Nashville. They lost Travis Moen to the Montreal Canadiens and veteran forward Claude Lemieux announced his retirement. Marcel Goc, Mike Grier, Lukas Kaspar, Kyle McLaren, Tomas Plihal, Jeremy Roenick and Alexei Semenov are still UFAs.

St. Louis Blues - The Blues re-signed pugilist B.J. Crombeen to a two-year deal. Jeff Woywitka inked a contract with Stars, while Jay McKee is now a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Trent Whitfield signed with the Boston Bruins. Manny Legace and Dan Hinote are the team's remaining significant UFAs.

Tampa Bay Lightning - The Lightning signed former Minnesota Wild players Stephane Veilleux and Kurtis Foster. They also added Antero Niittymaki, from the Flyers, to serve as the team's backup goalie next season. Tampa gave Swedish prospect, and second overall selection in the 2009 draft, Victor Hedman to his first professional contract. Defensemen Cory Murphy (New Jersey), Noah Welch (Atlanta) and Richard Petiot (Chicago) left the organization in free agency. Marek Malik, Josef Melichar, Janne Niskala, Matt Pettinger and Jason Ward are still UFAs.

Toronto Maple Leafs - The Maple Leafs continued their roster shakeup. They added two-way defender Francois Beauchemin to their team via free agency after he skated with the Ducks the last four years. Toronto was also active signing players from overseas, agreeing to terms with Swedish Elite League players Rickard Wallin and highly sought after goaltending prospect Jonas Gustavsson. The Buds signed their first round pick, seventh overall, in the 2009 draft Nazem Kadri to an entry-level deal as well. The Leafs lost AHLers Kris Newbury (Detroit), Jay Harrison (Carolina) and Jeremy Williams (Detroit). Boyd Devereaux, Martin Gerber, Jeff Hamilton, Curtis Joseph and Brad May are still UFAs.

Vancouver Canucks - Vancouver signed Andrew Raycroft, who is coming off an awful year in Colorado, to be their number two netminder behind Roberto Luongo. The Canucks re-signed hard-nosed defenseman Shane O'Brien to a one-year extension. AHL forward Jason Jaffray left for Calgary, while Drew MacIntyre and Jason Krog wound up in Atlanta. Jeff Cowan, Rob Davison, Taylor Pyatt, Curtis Sanford, Mats Sundin and Ossi Vaananen are still UFAs. Kyle Wellwood is scheduled for salary arbitration.

Washington Capitals - The Capitals have locked up defensemen Shaone Morrisonn and Jeff Schultz, as well as forwards Eric Fehr, Chris Bourque, Kyle Wilson Boyd Gordon and Steve Pinizzotto to contract extensions. Quintin Laing and Tyler Sloan are still UFAs.

 

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Anaheim Ducks - The Ducks were not big players in the free agency market, but they managed to re-sign center Erik Christensen and defenseman Scott Niedermayer. They also brought back forward Joffrey Lupul and obtained young blueliner Luca Sbisa, along with a pair of first round picks from the Flyers for star rearguard Chris Pronger. RFA defenseman James Wisniewski is filing for salary arbitration. Francois Beauchemin, Todd Marchant and Rob Niedermayer are still in free agency limbo as UFAs.

Atlanta Thrashers - The Thrashers inked hulking forward Nik Antropov as one of their major off-season acquisitions. Chris Thorburn, Marty Reasoner and Anssi Salmela have been re-signed by the club. Atlanta's other move this summer occurred when they dealt Garnet Exelby and Colin Stuart to Toronto for offensive defender Pavel Kubina and the rights to minor-leaguer Tim Stapleton. RFA Colby Armstrong has filed for salary arbitration.

Boston Bruins - Boston hung onto veteran Mark Recchi, youngster David Krejci, grinder Byron Bitz and number one goalie Tim Thomas. They also signed rugged winger Steve Begin to a one-year deal. However, the Bruins bid farewell to defensemen Shane Hnidy, who left for Minnesota, and Steve Montador, who departed for Buffalo. P.J. Axelsson, Manny Fernandez, Stephane Yelle and Peter Schaefer are Boston's UFAs. Matt Hunwick has filed for salary arbitration to possibly resolve their contract talks.

Buffalo Sabres - Buffalo replaced Jaroslav Spacek, who signed on to play in Montreal, with hard-nosed defender Steve Montador via free agency. They lost their leading scorer among defensemen last season for a hard-nosed blueliner, not exactly a great trade-off. Maxim Afinogenov, Dominic Moore, Teppo Numminen and Andrew Peters are still UFAs looking for a team. Clarke MacArthur has filed for salary arbitration.

Carolina Hurricanes - The Hurricanes stayed the course in free agency and managed to retain their players from last season. Chad LaRose and Erik Cole were unrestricted free agents, but both came to terms with Carolina after July 1. The Canes also re-signed mid-season acquisition Jussi Jokinen to a two-year deal. Defender Dennis Seidenberg is still looking for a new team, though. Tuomo Ruutu is taking the Hurricanes to salary arbitration.

Calgary Flames - Calgary's big move so far this off-season was trading for and then signing mobile rearguard Jay Bouwmeester. They sent UFA Jordan Leopold to Florida along with a third round pick in exchange for Bouwmeester's negotiation rights. The Flames signed David Moss and Adam Pardy to extensions, while bringing in UFA Fredrik Sjostrom from the Rangers. Calgary also re-acquired center Brandon Prust from the Coyotes for tough guy Jim Vandermeer. They lost blueliner Adrian Aucoin and leading goal scorer Mike Cammalleri to Phoenix and Montreal, respectively, via free agency. Todd Bertuzzi, Jamie Lundmark, Warren Peters, Andre Roy and Rhett Warrener are Calgary's significant UFAs.

Chicago Blackhawks - The Hawks made a lot of noise this off-season for the players they brought in as well as the players they were forced to let go. They caught the biggest fish on the market when they signed Marian Hossa from their division rival, Detroit, to a long-term deal and added two-way forward John Madden from New Jersey. They also came to terms with former Detroit winger Tomas Kopecy on a two-year contract. Chicago re-signed David Bolland to a five-year extension as well. However, the team lost a number of players to free agency, including starting goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin (Edmonton), leading scorer Martin Havlat (Minnesota), defensive specialist Samuel Pahlsson (Columbus) and gritty defender Matt Walker (Tampa Bay). Aaron Johnson will be taking the Hawks to salary arbitration.

Colorado Avalanche - The Avalanche signed goaltender Craig Anderson to compete for the starting job with Peter Budaj at training camp. They also re-signed tough guy Cody McLeod and dipped into the free agent pool for another enforcer in David Koci. Ian Laperriere left Colorado to sign with the Philadelphia Flyers. Ben Guite, Aaron MacKenzie, Lawrence Nycholat, Andrew Raycroft, Daniel Tjarnqvist, Brian Willsie and Cody McCormick are Colorado's UFAs. Joe Sakic is also listed as an unrestricted free agent, but it is suspected he will be returning to the team.

Columbus Blue Jackets - The Blues Jackets added Samuel Pahlsson and netminder Mathieu Garon to their roster for next year. Columbus lost defenseman Aaron Rome to Vancouver via free agency. They still have a few holes to fill, though, with Christian Backman, Manny Malhotra, Michael Peca and Jason Williams available on the unrestricted free agent list. Marc Methot has filed for salary arbitration.

Dallas Stars - The Stars brought in former Panthers' defenseman Karlis Skrastins, inking him to a two-year deal, and re-signed veteran two-way threat Jere Lehtinen to a one-year contract. Dallas allowed Steve Begin to walk away as an unrestricted free agent and sign in Boston. The club is still talking to Sergei Zubov about a possible return, but he is fielding offers from the rest of the league as well. Joel Lundqvist, Brendan Morrison, Mark Parrish, and Darryl Sydor are some other notable Stars on the UFA list.

Detroit Red Wings - Detroit has been excellent in the past at retaining the majority of their talent, but this off-season they certainly took a licking. The Wings lost Marian Hossa (Chicago), Mikael Samuelsson (Vancouver), Tomas Kopecky (Chicago) and Ty Conklin (St. Louis) due to free agency. They have also let veteran Chris Chelios know that they will not be bringing him back next campaign. Detroit is apparently looking to add a gritty forward to their roster, so keep your eyes peeled for that in the coming weeks. RFA Jiri Hudler has filed for salary arbitration.

Edmonton Oilers - Their attempts to land disgruntled Ottawa sniper Dany Heatley have been fruitless thus far, but their quest to add some much needed scoring power to their lineup likely is not over. Edmonton presented Nikolai Khabibulin with a four-year deal after refusing to give aging goaltender Dwayne Roloson a two-year contract; Roloson, in turn, left for the New York Islanders. The Oilers also re-signed Jason Strudwick to a one-year extension. Denis Grebeshkov is filing for salary arbitration, while Ales Kotalik is still available in the UFA pool.

Florida Panthers - The Panthers were forced to trade Jay Bouwmeester's negotiation rights to Calgary when it become obvious that he would test free agency. They received defenseman Jordan Leopold in the deal and promptly signed the UFA-to-be to a one-year contract. Karlis Skrastins left Florida for Dallas, while backup goaltender Craig Anderson bolted to possibly earn more playing time in Colorado. Florida inked former Devils' netminder Scott Clemmensen to fill their void left in the crease. They also re-signed upstart goal-scorer David Booth and Radek Dvorak to extensions. The Panthers also agreed to terms with Steven Reinprecht after acquiring him from Phoenix for prospect Stefan Meyer.

Los Angeles - The Kings planned to be big spenders in the off-season, but thus far have only managed to snag ex-Pittsburgh Penguins defender Rob Scuderi for their 2009-10 campaign. They were active on the trade front though, sending defensemen Tom Preissing and Kyle Quincey to the Avalanche in exchange for Ryan Smyth. Denis Gauthier, Derek Armstrong and Kyle Calder are currently available UFAs.

Minnesota Wild - Minnesota chose to replace the oft-injured Marian Gaborik, who signed for big money with the Rangers, with the similarly lineup-impaired Martin Havlat. They did not have much choice in the matter, though, as they wanted to do something in free agency and Havlat was the best available player at the time. The Wild also put pen to paper with UFA rearguards Shane Hnidy and Greg Zanon to replace Marc-Andre Bergeron, Kurtis Foster, and Martin Skoula, who are presently on the market. Stephane Veilleux is another Minnesota player who was a regular last season and is available for any team's bid. Minnesota acquired Kyle Brodziak from Edmonton at the draft for a pair of later round picks; he will be taking the team to salary arbitration.

Montreal Canadiens - The Canadiens entered the off-season with a plethora of key UFAs, so they began their roster readjustment process by dealing Christopher Higgins, prospect Ryan McDonagh and Pavel Valentenko to the New York Rangers for Scott Gomez, Tom Pyatt and Mike Busto. Montreal then signed diminutive forwards Brian Gionta and Michael Cammarelli to five-year contracts. They also added Jaroslav Spacek and Hal Gill to their blueline corps via the free agent market. Montreal lost physical defender Mike Komisarek to their bitter rival, the Toronto Maple Leafs. Saku Koivu, Tom Kostopoulos, Alexei Kovalev, Robert Lang, Mathieu Schneider, Alex Tanguay, Francis Bouillon, Patrice Brisebois and Mathieu Dandenault are still UFAs. Tomas Plekanec has filed for salary arbitration.

Nashville Predators - The Predators were pessimistic about their chances of re-signing a number of their free agents after July 1, but managed to agree to terms with Steve Sullivan and Joel Ward on extensions. However, they lost defenseman Greg Zanon (Minnesota) and Vernon Fiddler (Phoenix) via unrestricted free agency. Radek Bonk, Greg de Vries, Ville Koistinen and Scott Nichol are available as UFAs.

New Jersey Devils - The Devils were pillaged and plundered during this off-season, losing coach Brent Sutter to the Calgary Flames and then having to wave good-bye to John Madden (Chicago), Brian Gionta (Montreal), Michael Rupp (Pittsburgh) and Scott Clemmensen (Florida), as they all found new homes in free agency. Niclas Havelid exited the team to play in Sweden next campaign. New Jersey did retain the services of defensemen Johnny Oduya and Andy Greene, signing them to three- and two-year deals respectively. Travis Zajac has filed for salary arbitration. Bobby Holik, Brendan Shanahan and Kevin Weekes are still testing the waters as UFAs.

New York Islanders - The Islanders lured former Edmonton goalie Dwayne Roloson to their club in free agency. Yann Danis and Joey MacDonald carried the load between the pipes for New York when number one goalie Rick DiPietro went down early in the year. However, both of them are unsigned UFAs right now. The Islanders' impact was pretty much made at the 2009 NHL Entry Draft when they selected John Tavares first overall. He will likely be signed by the team around training camp and given every opportunity to make their opening day roster. Nate Thompson is taking the Islanders to salary arbitration. Andy Hilbert, Dean McAmmond, Thomas Pock and Mike Sillinger are the team's other significant UFAs.

New York Rangers - The Rangers made their triumphant return to their free-spending free agent ways by offering Marian Gaborik a lucrative, long-term deal. They are certainly banking on him staying healthier for them than he did in his days with Minnesota. The Blueshirts signed tough guy Donald Brashear after losing pugilist Colton Orr to the Maple Leafs in free agency. New York also brought in Christopher Higgins, prospect defender Ryan McDonagh and Pavel Valentenko from the Montreal Canadiens in a trade for Scott Gomez, Tom Pyatt and Mike Busto. New York signed ex-Colorado Avalanche cast-off Tyler Arnason as well. Nik Antropov (Atlanta) and Fredrik Sjostrom (Calgary) left the Rangers as UFAs. Nikolai Zherdev and Ryan Callahan have filed for salary arbitration. Mark Bell, Blair Betts, Paul Mara and Derek Morris are on the market as UFAs.

Ottawa Senators - Much of the Senators' off-season has revolved around trying to deal star sniper Dany Heatley out of town after he requested a trade. They have been unsuccessful in moving him at this time, but the situation appears to be far from over. Ottawa did manage to re-sign unrestricted free agent enforcer Chris Neil to a four-year contract. Mike Comrie and Brad Isbister are the club's only noteworthy UFAs.

Philadelphia Flyers - The Flyers made their splash on draft day when they obtained All-Star blueliner Chris Pronger from the Anaheim Ducks for Joffrey Lupul, Luca Sbisa and two first-round picks. They also dipped into the free agent pool when they signed gritty forward Ian Laperriere and goaltender Brian Boucher to multi-year deals. Philadelphia is also taking a chance on loose canon netminder Ray Emery. The former Ottawa Senator played last year in Russia before inking a one-year contract with the Broad Street Bullies. They needed to restock their talent in the crease after deciding not to re-sign pending UFA goaltenders Martin Biron and Antero Niittymaki. Mike Knuble left the team to sign with the Washington Capitals, while Derian Hatcher officially announced his retirement. Andrew Alberts and Lasse Kukkonen are still UFAs.

Phoenix Coyotes - The Coyotes brought Vernon Fiddler over from Nashville to help out their penalty killing and faceoff proficiency. They also signed defenseman Adrian Aucoin and goaltender Jason LaBarbera to compete for the role of Ilya Bryzgalov's backup. Phoenix's last move so far was signing Stefan Meyer, whom they acquired in a trade with Florida for Reinprecht. The Desert Dogs were busy at the draft as well, trading Brandon Prust back to Calgary for hard-nosed blueliner Jim Vandermeer. Then they acquired the rights to minor-league defenseman Sami Lepisto from Washington and the rights to Shaun Heshka from Vancouver. Dmitri Kalinin and Ken Klee are UFAs, while Nigel Dawes and Daniel Winnik have filed for salary arbitration.

Pittsburgh Penguins - The Stanley Cup champions were fairly active in free agency. They re-signed veteran Bill Guerin, Ruslan Fedotenko and Craig Adams to extensions. However, they lost defensemen Hal Gill (Montreal) and Rob Scuderi (Los Angeles), as well as backup goalie Mathieu Garon (Columbus) in the free agent frenzy. The Penguins did manage to attract one new free agent to their club by signing former Devils' winger Michael Rupp to a two-year deal and they plucked Chris Conner away from the Dallas Stars with a one-year contract. Phillipe Boucher, Miroslav Satan and Petr Sykora are unsigned UFAs.

San Jose Sharks - The Sharks took care of their own for the most part this off-season. They re-signed Rob Blake, Ryane Clowe and Kent Huskins to extensions. Backup goalie Brian Boucher signed on to play in Philadelphia next season. Marcel Goc, Mike Grier, Lukas Kaspar, Claude Lemieux, Kyle McLaren, Travis Moen, Tomas Plihal, Jeremy Roenick and Alexei Semenov are the team's UFAs, meaning San Jose needs to plug a few holes on their roster before the 2009-10 season begins.

St. Louis Blues - The Blues planned to shore up their goaltending situation heading into this summer and bring a capable number two into their system. As a result, they signed Ty Conklin to a two-year deal to serve under starter Chris Mason. St. Louis also re-signed Mike Weaver, Brad Winchester and Keith Tkachuk to extensions. Defenseman Jeff Woywitka was not tendered a qualifying offer by the team, making him a UFA, and Jay Mckee was bought out by the Blues, which placed him on the open market as well. Manny Legace, Dan Hinote and Trent Whitfield are the club's other UFAs.

Tampa Bay Lightning - The Lightning were not as active as they were in the free agent market than they were a year ago and perhaps for good reason. Most of the team's free agent signings last season turned into rather large busts. However, during this off-season Tampa appeared to be much more diligent in their free agent choices. They came to terms with tough-as-nails defenseman Matt Walker, formerly of the Chicago Blackhawks, as well as ex-Vancouver Canucks' rearguard Mattias Ohlund, to help anchor their young 'D' corps. The Lightning were clearly thinking of their 2009 second overall pick, Swedish bluliner Victor Hedman, when they decided to target Ohlund. Tough guy David Koci departed for Colorado via free agency and Matt Smaby has filed for salary arbitration. Marek Malik, Josef Melichar, Cory Murphy, Janne Niskala, Richard Petiot, Matt Pettinger and Jason Ward are some of Tampa Bay's existing UFAs.

Toronto Maple Leafs - The Maple Leafs did not make the free agent splash that was advertised by the organization, but general manager Brian Burke has certainly imprinted his mark on the team during this off-season. Team toughness was something he drastically wanted to address, so the Leafs opened free agency by signing aggressive blueliner Mike Komisarek from division rival Montreal and enforcer Colton Orr from the Rangers. Toronto also traded Pavel Kubina and the rights to Tim Stapleton to Atlanta for the hard-hitting Garnet Exelby and Colin Stuart. The Buds re-signed Mikhail Grabovski to a three-year contract extension as well. Boyd Devereaux, Martin Gerber, Jeff Hamilton, Curtis Joseph and Brad May are currently UFAs.

Vancouver Canucks - Vancouver proved to be quite lucky when they came to terms with Daniel and Henrik Sedin when it appeared as though both were on the verge of leaving for unrestricted free agency. They also managed to lure dynamic two-way threat Mikael Samuelsson away from the Detroit Red Wings, inking him to a three-year deal. The Canucks also signed UFA defender Aaron Rome to a one-year contract. Backup goalie Jason LaBarbera exited for Phoenix and Mattias Ohlund will suit up for Tampa Bay next year. Jeff Cowan, Rob Davison, Taylor Pyatt, Curtis Sanford, Mats Sundin and Ossi Vaananen are on the market as UFAs. Kyle Wellwood has filed for salary arbitration.

Washington Capitals - The Capitals lost valuable veteran centers Viktor Kozlov and Sergei Fedorov to the Kontinental Hockey League overseas. Bruiser Donald Brashear also left the team to sign a two-year deal with the Rangers. Washington did help plug the hole by inking former Flyers' winger Mike Knuble to a two-year contract. Knuble should be excellent on the Caps' power play next season. Washington has Alexandre Giroux, Quintin Laing and Tyler Sloan available as UFAs and defenseman Milan Jurcina has filed for salary arbitration.