Goaltender Robin Lehner could reportedly jump from RFA to UFA before free agency opens.

The Buffalo Sabres aren't expected to offer the pending restricted free agent a qualifying offer as July 1 nears, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie, leaving the club with a gaping hole between the pipes.

If Lehner leaves, Buffalo will be without an NHL goalie - although Linus Ullmark is expected to graduate from the AHL this fall. Chad Johnson, Lehner's backup this past season, is a UFA.

Lehner, who has split his NHL career between the Ottawa Senators and Sabres, has a save percentage of .915 through 219 games. He would join an underwhelming UFA goalie class headlined by Jaroslav Halak, Cam Ward, Kari Lehtonen, Jonathan Bernier, and Carter Hutton.

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Carolina Hurricanes forward Elias Lindholm is in high demand as he heads toward restricted free agency, reports The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun.

While LeBrun notes the Hurricanes would like to re-sign Lindholm, teams are still inquiring about a potential trade involving the 2013 NHL draft's fifth overall pick. "He is a player to monitor," LeBrun wrote.

'Canes general manager Don Waddell and Lindholm's agent Peter Wallen are expected to chat on Friday at the NHL draft, LeBron adds. However, at this point, talks have not progressed.

Lindholm, a 23-year-old from Boden, Sweden, is looking for his third NHL contract. He registered 45 and 44 points in 2016-17 and 2017-18, respectively, on a two-year, $5.4-million deal.

The Hurricanes, whose new owner Tom Dundon has been open about his desire to determine the trade value of his players, have also reportedly gauged interest in sniper Jeff Skinner and top-four defenseman Justin Faulk.

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Milan Lucic - and his massive contract - may be staying put, Edmonton Oilers general manager Peter Chiarelli told reporters on Thursday.

Lucic, who posted just 34 points in 82 games this past season, has been the subject of trade rumours, in large part due to an albatross contract which still owes the power forward $30 million over the next five years. However, Chiarelli says his confidence level in Lucic is "pretty high."

"I think Milan’s a pretty high-character individual. He has to have a good summer," the GM said in Dallas ahead of the NHL draft. "Really, conditioning for him is not really an issue. He has to be in the right frame of mind. He’s a proud guy and we expect to have him back at a better level than he was last year.”

Asked if Lucic has requested a trade out of Edmonton, Chiarelli was tight-lipped: "I'm not going to comment on that."

Since signing with the Oilers in 2015 via free agency, Lucic has recorded 33 goals and 51 assists for 84 points in 164 games. He previously played for the Boston Bruins and Los Angeles Kings.

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The Edmonton Oilers have placed Eric Gryba on unconditional waivers for the purpose of buying out the remainder of his contract, the team announced Thursday.

The right-handed defenseman had one year left on a two-year, $1.8-million contract signed last summer. According to CapFriendly.com, the move will save Edmonton $300,000, as only $600,000 of Gryba's final year can be slashed from the club's payroll.

Gryba appeared in 21 games for the Oilers this past season, recording two assists while skating for nearly 15 minutes per night. The six-year veteran was acquired in a June 2015 trade with his original NHL team, the Ottawa Senators.

The 30-year-old posted a farewell video to his official Twitter account shortly after the Oilers went public with the transaction:

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The Toronto Maple Leafs signed both defenseman Connor Carrick and goaltender Calvin Pickard to one-year contract extensions, the team announced Wednesday.

Carrick, 24, will make $1.3 million, while Pickard, 26, will earn $800,000 at the NHL level.

The defenseman - who was a pending restricted free agent - recorded 12 points in 47 games in a third-pairing role for the Leafs this past season. He ranked third among regular Toronto skaters in Corsi For rating (52.5 percent), according to NaturalStatTrick.com.

Pickard, meanwhile, suited up for only a single NHL game in 2017-18. The ex-Colorado Avalanche backup - another former pending RFA - spent the bulk of the season with the AHL Marlies, where he posted a .918 save percentage in 33 games.

Carrick, a 2012 fifth-round pick of the Washington Capitals who has played two full seasons with the Leafs since coming over via trade, nearly doubles his previous salary. He earned $750,000 per year over the last two seasons.

He called it an "awesome day."

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Will the Ottawa Senators roll the dice?

According to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet, the embattled Canadian franchise plans on using its fourth overall pick during Friday’s NHL draft.

If the Senators do, in fact, pick a player with their first-round pick in Dallas, they will dramatically reduce their odds of drafting American prodigy Jack Hughes in 2019 thanks to a condition in the Matt Duchene trade.

Duchene was flipped to Ottawa last November as part of a three-way deal with the Colorado Avalanche and Nashville Predators. The trade included a conditional first-round pick, swapped from Ottawa to Colorado, which forces Senators GM Pierre Dorion to fork over either the club's 2018 first-rounder or its 2019 first-rounder.

Hughes, who is being hailed as the next great NHL superstar, destroyed the USHL this past season, recording 48 points in 24 games as a 17-year-old forward on the United States National Team Development Program. The consensus top prospect for next year's draft is the younger brother of 2018 blue-chipper Quinn Hughes.

On the flip side, there will be a number of quality prospects available to the Senators in the No. 4 spot. Assuming they remain seated through three picks, forwards Brady Tkachuk and Filip Zadina, as well as defencemen Evan Bouchard and Noah Dobson, are prime options.

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