There has been further progress in contract talks between Tyler Seguin and the Dallas Stars.

The 26-year-old can become an unrestricted free agent next offseason; in late August, Seguin expressed disappointment that a new deal had not yet been reached.

"We are deep in discussions. It's moving in the right direction," Stars general manager Jim Nill told team reporter Mark Stepneski.

Talks picked up steam upon Seguin returning to Dallas prior to training camp.

"I think once he got down around the team and stuff, that was important for him," Nill added. "Like I said, things are moving in the right direction.

"I'd like to get it done before the season starts, but with negotiations, you never know. But I think both parties would like to get it done before. I think it's always been the plan to get it done before the season starts."

Time is of the essence, as Dallas opens the season Oct. 4 against the Arizona Coyotes.

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Drew Stafford is getting his shot to make the New Jersey Devils, as the veteran forward will attend camp on a professional tryout, the team announced Friday.

Stafford appeared in 59 games with the Devils last season, registering eight goals and seven assists. He inked a one-year deal worth $800,000 with New Jersey in August 2017.

Stafford, 32, has notched 415 career points across 784 games with the Buffalo Sabres, Winnipeg Jets, Boston Bruins, and Devils.

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Mikkel Boedker played his junior hockey in Canada, but after stints with three American clubs in 10 NHL seasons, an offseason trade will bring the Danish winger back to the Great White North.

A June trade sent Boedker from the San Jose Sharks to the Ottawa Senators, and while on the surface it looks like he's leaving a contender for a team in a tailspin, Boedker is intrigued by the Senators' potential.

"I'm very much (excited)," Boedker told Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. "It's a good opportunity to play some good hockey and join a Canadian franchise that's about to turn the ship around. It's good to be part of something like that."

The hope is that Boedker will offset some of the production lost from forward Mike Hoffman, who was shipped to the Sharks in the same deal (then later flipped to the Florida Panthers).

Boedker finished with 37 points in 74 appearances last season, however 29 points came in the 45 games once the calendar turned to 2018. The 28-year-old believes the Senators can have a similar turnaround this season after finishing in 30th place last season.

"When people talk about Ottawa I don't think they give them enough credit because I think there's a lot of capable players and a lot players that have done some damage in their careers on the stats sheet," Boedker said. "I still think it's a very capable team and we've just got to get back to that. We've just got to get back to where it's all in every night and every night matters."

The Senators kick off the 2018-19 campaign against the Chicago Blackhawks on Oct. 4.

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If there is any confusion about Max Pacioretty's long-term aspirations, his agent, Allan Walsh, is attempting to set the record straight.

Walsh's comments come just two days after the Montreal Canadiens captain confirmed he and the team are not discussing an extension.

Pacioretty signed on with Walsh this summer after mutually parting ways with former representative Pat Brisson.

As Walsh indicates, the Habs have attempted to trade Pacioretty, but a deal with the Los Angeles Kings may not have been the only move that ultimately fell through. The team also reportedly had a three-way trade in place at the draft which would have shipped Pacioretty to the New York Islanders.

The 29-year-old can become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

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It's no secret that the Philadelphia Flyers' penalty kill could use a bit of a boost.

After finishing with a 75.8 percent kill rate last season - third-worst in the NHL - the Flyers are seeking a new face to add to their scheme when down a man.

"I'm open to it, but it would probably be more of a lateral move on the market rather than a free agent," Flyers general manager Ron Hextall told Dave Isaac of the Cherry Hill Courier-Post. "It would be a forward. We'd like to add a penalty-killing forward but to this point there's been nothing there that's made enough sense for us to move."

Philadelphia did improve on the penalty kill in the late stages of last season - 78.6 percent after Feb. 1, good for 19th in the NHL.

"If we have the same personnel, we have to be the entire year like we were the last 25 games. We can't be at the bottom of the league," Hextall said. "We saw signs at the end of the year, which is why I feel some comfort right now.

"Do I feel total comfort? No, I don't. We finished bottom three in the league and that's not good enough. Again, the players that we have, have to be better."

Head coach Dave Hakstol is entering his fourth season with the Flyers. During his tenure, the team has made fewer trips to the penalty box each season, only to watch its performance on the penalty kill also decline:

With those numbers, it's understandable for Hextall to be open to tweaking his lineup.

Still, it wasn't an offseason of fireworks in Philadelphia, as the team recruited James van Riemsdyk and defenseman Christian Folin, but neither acquisition is a penalty-kill specialist. Van Riemsdyk saw less than two minutes total on the penalty kill over 81 games with Toronto, while Folin's 1:05 average ice time while shorthanded ranked fifth among Los Angeles blue-liners.

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It's been an offseason of turmoil for the Ottawa Senators. Amidst the tumult, it's the harassment charge against former assistant general manager Randy Lee that isn't sitting well with at least one outspoken player.

"As a guy who was kind of one of Randy's guys growing up, that was disappointing," defenseman Mark Borowiecki told the Ottawa Sun's Ken Warren. "I was genuinely disappointed in Randy there. I wasn't there, I don't know the whole story or the circumstances. It is what it is at this point."

Lee was charged with second-degree harassment in late May after he was accused of making lewd comments toward, and rubbing the shoulders of, a 19-year-old male shuttle bus driver. The longtime assistant GM has since resigned from the organization.

Lee has pleaded not guilty to the charges and is scheduled to make his next court appearance on Sept. 13 in Buffalo, N.Y.

"When you are part of this franchise, in whatever capacity, every time you are out in public, you are an ambassador for this brand, for this logo," Borowiecki added. "I hold myself to a certain standard. I think we need to make sure that everyone in this organization holds themselves to that standard.

"We are all proud to be Ottawa Senators and there is an expectation on how to behave and handle yourself, and, obviously, in whatever situation it was, Randy fell short and you're going to suffer the consequences."

An Ottawa native, Borowiecki has been part of the Senators' organization since 2008, while Lee had been with the team since 1995.

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It's been an offseason of turmoil for the Ottawa Senators. Amidst the tumult, it's the harassment charge against former assistant general manager Randy Lee that isn't sitting well with at least one outspoken player.

"As a guy who was kind of one of Randy's guys growing up, that was disappointing," defenseman Mark Borowiecki told the Ottawa Sun's Ken Warren. "I was genuinely disappointed in Randy there. I wasn't there, I don't know the whole story or the circumstances. It is what it is at this point."

Lee was charged with second-degree harassment in late May after he was accused of making lewd comments toward, and rubbing the shoulders of, a 19-year-old male shuttle bus driver. The longtime assistant GM has since resigned from the organization.

Lee has pleaded not guilty to the charges and is scheduled to make his next court appearance on Sept. 13 in Buffalo, N.Y.

"When you are part of this franchise, in whatever capacity, every time you are out in public, you are an ambassador for this brand, for this logo," Borowiecki added. "I hold myself to a certain standard. I think we need to make sure that everyone in this organization holds themselves to that standard.

"We are all proud to be Ottawa Senators and there is an expectation on how to behave and handle yourself, and, obviously, in whatever situation it was, Randy fell short and you're going to suffer the consequences."

An Ottawa native, Borowiecki has been part of the Senators' organization since 2008, while Lee had been with the team since 1995.

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Could this be the beginning of the Tyler Seguin sweepstakes?

The Dallas Stars center can become an unrestricted free agent next summer, and while the club said in July that it was hopeful to sign him prior to this season, he's frustrated that the two sides haven't already agreed on a contract extension.

"Nothing's really going on. Pretty much haven't been talking much this summer. It's been a little disappointing," Seguin told theScore's John Matisz on Tuesday. "I thought I'd have some exciting news to talk about ... this late in the summer."

As it stands, the 26-year-old is about to begin the final season of a six-year pact with a $5.75-million cap hit. Should Seguin reach free agency, his cap hit could nearly double on his next deal, since he's one of the NHL's top scorers in recent years. He finished second on the Stars last season with 78 points, one shy of captain Jamie Benn.

Seguin is one of several high-level players who could potentially headline free agency next summer, a group that includes Sergei Bobrovsky and Artemi Panarin of the Columbus Blue Jackets and Erik Karlsson and Matt Duchene of the Ottawa Senators.

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Martin Brodeur has resigned as assistant general manager of the St. Louis Blues, the team announced Tuesday.

"I want to thank Tom Stillman, Doug Armstrong, Chris Zimmerman, and the Blues organization for giving me the opportunity to continue my playing career and begin my career off the ice in hockey operations," Brodeur said in a statement. "I am looking forward to the next chapter of my career."

A Sunday report indicated Brodeur left his post with the Blues after his three-year contract expired. The report also linked Brodeur to a possible front-office position with his former club, the New Jersey Devils.

In place of Brodeur, the Blues have promoted Bill Armstrong (no relation to GM Doug Armstrong). The 48-year-old has served as the director of amateur scouting in St. Louis since 2010.

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The Florida Panthers have signed free-agent forward Troy Brouwer to a one-year contract, the team announced Monday.

The deal is worth $850,000, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.

"Troy is a skilled veteran forward with championship experience," Panthers president of hockey operations and general manager Dale Tallon said in a statement. "He adds depth to our forward group and his leadership will help our developing young core take the next step this season."

The 33-year-old spent the last two seasons with the Calgary Flames and became an unrestricted free agent in early August after the team bought out the final two years of his contract.

Brouwer tallied six goals and 16 assists in 76 appearances with the Flames during the 2017-18 season.

The Vancouver native has logged 763 career games during stints with the Chicago Blackhawks, Washington Capitals, St. Louis Blues, and Flames.

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