Colorado Avalanche superstar Cale Makar will grace the cover of the NHL 24 video game, EA Sports announced Monday.

Makar is only the fourth defenseman ever to be the game's sole cover athlete, joining P.K. Subban (NHL 19), Dion Phaneuf (NHL 09), and Chris Pronger (NHL 2000).

He's also the third Avalanche player to be on the cover after Joe Sakic (NHL 2004) and Peter Forsberg (NHL 98).

The 24-year-old is arguably the top blue-liner - and one of the best players overall - in the NHL. He recorded 66 points in 60 games while battling injuries last season.

Makar enjoyed a historic 2021-22 campaign, winning the Norris Trophy with 86 points in 77 contests. He also took home the Conn Smythe Trophy, producing eight goals and 21 assists in 20 playoff contests during the Avalanche's Stanley Cup triumph.

Colorado drafted Makar fourth overall in 2017. He won the Calder Trophy in his 2019-20 rookie campaign by racking up 50 points in 57 games.

EA Sports will release an official trailer for the video game Wednesday.

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The Vancouver Canucks bolstered their forward depth on Friday by signing Pius Suter to a two-year contract with an average annual value of $1.6 million, the team announced.

Suter recorded 14 goals and 10 assists in 79 games while averaging 14:04 per contest with the Detroit Red Wings last season.

The 27-year-old Swiss product has played both center and wing throughout his three-year NHL career, although he figures to slot in at the former in Vancouver, given the Canucks' lack of depth down the middle. After Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller, Vancouver's center depth is comprised of Teddy Blueger and Nils Aman. Suter will likely compete for the third-line center role.

"Bringing in Pius for the next couple of years really helps us strengthen our centre ice position," Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin said in a statement.

"Adding a player who has scored 43 goals the past three seasons will be a boost for us up front and he will also add to our penalty-killing unit as well," Allvin added. "His flexibility to be able to play down the middle or on the wing will give (head coach Rick Tocchet) more options when putting together his forward lines."

Suter's posted excellent defensive metrics throughout his career - both at even strength and on the penalty kill. The latter will be a welcomed boost to a Canucks team that owned the NHL's worst penalty kill at 71.6% last season.

The 5-foot-11, 179-pound forward initially signed with the Blackhawks as an undrafted free agent in 2020. He spent one year in Chicago before playing for the Red Wings the last two seasons.

Suter has averaged 16 goals and 16 assists per 82 games across his three NHL campaigns.

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Evgeny Svechnikov is heading home.

The Russian free-agent winger signed a two-year deal with Ak Bars Kazan of the KHL, the team announced Friday.

Svechnikov came up through Kazan's junior program before coming to North America to continue his career.

The 26-year-old skated in 58 games with the San Jose Sharks last season, notching eight goals and six assists. He's tallied 20 goals and 25 assists in 172 games in his six-year NHL career.

The Detroit Red Wings drafted Svechnikov 19th overall in 2015.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs signed 2023 first-round pick Easton Cowan to a three-year, entry-level contract Thursday, the team announced.

The selection of Cowan at 28th overall came as a bit of a surprise, as most analysts projected him to be picked in the second or third round.

Cowan, a native of Mount Brydges, Ontario, said it was a "dream" to be picked by his hometown Maple Leafs.

The speedy winger collected 53 points in 68 games with the OHL's London Knights last season, adding nine goals and 12 assists in 20 postseason contests. He figures to play a more sizeable role for the Knights in 2023-24.

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Erik Karlsson has one clear goal in mind following a trade to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday: win the Stanley Cup.

The three-time Norris Trophy winner has accomplished more than most in his 14-year NHL career, but he's still chasing that elusive Stanley Cup ring.

Karlsson, whose contract contains a no-movement clause, said he didn't give the San Jose Sharks a list of preferred destinations - he just wanted to go to a contender. When Pittsburgh got involved, he became interested.

"I was very excited about the opportunity to go somewhere I could be on a team where we're contending," he said Wednesday during his introductory press conference. "It was a lot of ups and downs and hard to get a grasp of where things were at. It was exciting when I heard they were interested. I'm happy it worked out in the end."

At 33 years old, Karlsson is the youngest member of Pittsburgh's new core four, joining Sidney Crosby (36), Evgeni Malkin (37), and Kris Letang (36). Even though the Pens missed the playoffs last season, Karlsson still believes the group has what it takes to go on another deep run.

"You have a lot of strong players that have been here for a long time with extreme success," Karlsson said. "I am excited to work alongside players like that, learn from them. ... We're all trying to do the same thing - win hockey games and win the Cup."

Karlsson has experienced Pittsburgh's playoff prowess first hand. During his nine years with the Ottawa Senators, Karlsson lost to the Penguins on three separate occasions in the postseason, including the 2017 Eastern Conference Final when Pittsburgh went on to win it all.

"I've played against Pittsburgh many times, and lost to them a few times when they went on to win the ultimate prize," he said. "That's something they know how to do here, and the players that they've had here for a long time are still really good players."

If the Penguins can qualify for the postseason and make some noise in the spring, Karlsson will undoubtedly play a key role. He's coming off a historic campaign that saw him become the sixth defenseman in history to record 100 points in a single season, and he did so despite playing on the NHL's fourth-worst team.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs signed goaltender Martin Jones to a one-year, $875,000 contract, the team announced Wednesday.

Jones spent last season with the Seattle Kraken, going 27-13-3 with an .886 save percentage and a 2.99 goals-against average.

The 33-year-old veteran gives the Leafs insurance between the pipes behind starter Ilya Samsonov and backup Joseph Woll. Jones' signing comes two weeks after Toronto announced netminder Matt Murray is out indefinitely and would be placed on long-term injured reserve to begin the 2023-24 campaign.

Prior to Jones' signing, no healthy goaltender in the Leafs organization behind Samsonov and Woll had any NHL experience. Even Woll, despite shining in limited opportunities last season, only has 15 NHL games - including regular season and playoffs - under his belt.

Jones was stellar during the first five years of his career. He played at least 60 games in three straight seasons for the San Jose Sharks from 2015-18, accumulating a .915 save percentage and 21.1 goals saved above expected in that span, per Evolving-Hockey. He was excellent in the postseason during those three years with San Jose too, posting a .926 save percentage in 40 starts. He also led the Sharks to the 2016 Stanley Cup Final.

However, Jones has been one of the league's worst goalies ever since, recording an .895 save percentage over his last five seasons. His minus-10.74 goals saved above expected was the ninth-worst mark among NHL goaltenders last season.

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Even though the personnel changes have been minimal so far this offseason, Nazem Kadri believes viewers will see a new-look Calgary Flames team in 2023-24.

"I think a lot of guys on the team are ready to kind of play to their potential," Kadri told NHL.com's Mike Zeisberger. "For whatever reason, we got a little restricted last year, so I'm just looking forward to a clean slate and starting the year off strong."

After missing the playoffs last year despite lofty preseason expectations, the Flames' only notable roster move has been trading leading scorer Tyler Toffoli for Yegor Sharangovich and a third-round pick. However, Calgary replaced general manager Brad Treliving and head coach Darryl Sutter with Craig Conroy and Ryan Huska, respectively.

Kadri was one of several Flames players - including winger Jonathan Huberdeau and goaltender Jacob Markstrom - to have a down season in 2022-23. The center recorded 56 points in 82 games after notching a career-high 87 in 71 contests the year prior with the Colorado Avalanche.

But Kadri believes the club will play more freely under Huska in 2023-24, which will lead to better results.

"Any time you get fresh faces, it's just a new energy and a new enthusiasm," Kadri said. "So, of course, with the type of personnel we have, we can play creative. We have a lot of skill."

However, there's still plenty of time between now and the start of the season for Conroy to make significant changes to the current roster. After all, the new GM said in his introductory press conference that he doesn't want to let key players walk for free, as Johnny Gaudreau did a year ago.

Kadri, who's signed for six more years, likely isn't going anywhere. However, the team has several players entering the final years of their deals, including Elias Lindholm, Mikael Backlund, Noah Hanifin, Chris Tanev, and Nikita Zadorov, who've all been the subject of trade speculation.

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The Coyotes have set their sights on building a new arena in the city of Mesa, Arizona, the team announced Wednesday.

"We can confirm that Coyotes Owner, Chairman & Governor Alex Meruelo has executed a Letter of Intent to purchase a parcel of land located in Mesa, Arizona to be the potential site for a sports arena and entertainment district for the Club," the team said in a statement.

The Coyotes' last bid to construct a new arena in Arizona failed when residents of Tempe voted against building a new $2.1-billion entertainment district back in May.

The club, which is currently playing out of the 4,600-seat Mullett Arena at Arizona State Unversity in Tempe, has vowed to remain in Arizona despite plenty of relocation speculation. The team's agreement to play at Mullett Arena expires after the 2024-25 campaign.

"The Coyotes remain committed to building the first privately funded sports facility in Arizona history and ensuring the Valley as the Club's permanent home. In addition to this property in Mesa, the Club will continue to explore other potential sites in the East Valley."

Mullett Arena is already the Coyotes' third arena since the franchise relocated from Winnipeg in 1996. The team played at America West Arena in downtown Phoenix before moving to Glendale's Gila River Arena in 2003.

Forbes ranked Arizona as the NHL's least valuable franchise in December.

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Anaheim Ducks forward Isac Lundestrom will miss the first half of the 2023-24 season after suffering a torn Achilles tendon, the team confirmed, according to The Athletic's Eric Stephens.

Lundestrom underwent surgery and isn't expected back until January.

The 23-year-old tallied four goals and 10 assists in 61 games this past season. He was much more productive in 2021-22, registering 16 goals and 13 assists in 80 contests.

Lundestrom was projected to center the team's third line behind Trevor Zegras and Mason McTavish. His absence could open the door for 2023 No. 2 pick Leo Carlsson to make the team out of training camp.

The Ducks drafted Lundestrom 23rd overall in 2018.

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Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ryan Ellis isn't expected to continue his NHL playing career due to a torn psoas muscle, president of hockey operations Keith Jones said Wednesday.

"We all wish for Ryan just as a human being because I've been through that at the end of my career when there's uncertainty about whether you would come back or not and then dealing with the reality of not coming back," Jones said, per NHL.com's Adam Kimelman. "It's a tough time. It's a very, really difficult time. I'm very sympathetic to what he's gone through."

Ellis hasn't played since November 2021. He only suited up in four games for the Flyers since being acquired in a trade with the Nashville Predators in July 2021. The 32-year-old has four seasons remaining on his contract with a $6.25-million cap hit.

Ellis was a stellar two-way blue-liner during his prime years. From 2016-21, he averaged 49 points per 82 games and 23:47 per contest. He tallied 275 points in 566 career regular-season games, plus seven goals and 31 assists in 74 playoff contests.

The Flyers did receive good news on Wednesday, though, as Jones announced that forwards Sean Couturier and Cam Atkinson are expected to be ready for training camp.

"The end of last season, they were ready to come back then," Jones said. "So now they're getting a full offseason of training and getting ready to prepare for the rigors of a long regular season. All indications are that they are full-go, and we're really excited about that."

Couturier underwent two back surgeries in less than a year, having procedures in February and October of 2022. The 2020 Selke Trophy winner missed all of last season and was limited to just 29 games in 2021-22, notching six goals and 11 assists.

Atkinson missed all of 2022-23 due to a neck injury, which required surgery in December. The speedy winger produced 23 goals and 27 assists in 73 games in 2021-22.

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