When Chase Stillman learned he’d been traded to the Vancouver Canucks organization this summer, it was unexpected but exciting. Rather than dwelling on the uncertainty of being moved, not once, but twice in the same season, the 22-year-old forward is choosing to focus on what it represents: opportunity.

“It was awesome,” Stillman said. “Obviously, getting traded twice in the same season is a lot on a player, but at the end of the day, you’ve got to look at it as someone wanting you. I got traded for a pretty important piece on the team last year, so it’s clear they see me as high value.”

That mindset —resilient, grounded, and optimistic — has defined Stillman’s approach to his career so far. The American-born winger, originally drafted by the New Jersey Devils in the first round of the 2021 NHL Draft, joins the Canucks organization that prizes speed, grit, and relentless competition. After a strong showing at training camp, Stillman began the year in Abbotsford, where he’s eager to establish himself as a key piece of the team’s forward group.

“I just want to get my foot in the door and play in the NHL,” Stillman said. “Regardless of what that takes or what kind of player I have to be to get there. That’s the goal this year. It’s a brand new season, zeros across the board, so I’m just trying to enjoy the process.”

Over the summer, Stillman focused on building both his physical strength and mental resilience. He trained with his agency’s development group alongside other pros, sharpening his skating and conditioning, but he admits the mental reset was just as important.

“It was a tough start to last year, for sure,” he reflected. “But mentally, I’ve been working on building back my confidence and remembering that every season is a clean slate. I’ve been really excited about coming here. The fans are great, and obviously, Canada loves their hockey.”

Stillman’s enthusiasm for Vancouver is palpable, and he’s already experienced a taste of what’s to come. “I played in the exhibition game here in Abbotsford, and it was pretty rowdy,” he laughed. “I’m excited to see what it’s like during the regular season for sure.”

Hockey runs deep in the Stillman family. His father, Cory, played over 1,000 NHL games and won two Stanley Cups, while his brother, Riley, is a defenceman in the Buffalo Sabres organization. When asked if his brother had any advice about playing in Vancouver, Chase smiled.

“Yeah, he said the fans really like their hockey here. Regardless of what you do or what your job is, if you do your job really well, you’re going to be liked. There’s no better feeling than when you’ve got fans that love the way you play.”

For Stillman, that’s what this new chapter is about: proving himself to a new city, a new organization, and to the fans who fill the stands. “I just want to show them that I’m a fun player to watch,” he said. “That I can do a lot of things on the ice. I’m excited to get going.”

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.

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With the 2025-26 NHL regular season almost here, several players were placed on waivers on Oct. 5. The Philadelphia Flyers were one of the clubs involved, as they placed newcomer Carl Grundstrom on waivers shortly after acquiring him from the San Jose Sharks. 

Yet, four former Flyers have also been placed on waivers, as Cal Petersen (Minnesota Wild), Tyler Pitlick (Wild), Erik Gustafsson (Detroit Red Wings), and Olle Lycksell (Ottawa Senators) have all hit the wire. 

Petersen signed with the Wild this summer. This was after he had a 13-15-3 record, a .885 save percentage, and a 3.14 goals-against average in 31 games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in 2024-25. In five games with the Flyers in 2023-24, he had a 2-2-0 record, a .864 save percentage, and a 3.90 goals-against average. 

Pitlick also signed with the Wild during the summer. In 63 games with the Flyers during the 2019-20 season, he posted eight goals, 12 assists, 20 points, and a plus-11 rating. 

Gustafsson is entering his second season with the Red Wings, where he carries a $2 million cap hit. In 24 games with the Flyers during the 2020-21 season, he recorded one goal, 10 points, and a minus-2 rating. 

As for Lycksell, he signed with the Senators this summer. In 45 games over three NHL seasons with the Flyers from 2022-23 to 2024-25, he recorded one goal, 11 points, 14 hits, and 16 blocks. 

The NHL saw several players around the league be placed on waivers on Oct. 5. The Montreal Canadiens were one of the many teams that placed players on waivers, as Sammy Blais and Kaapo Kahkonen hit the wire.

Two former Canadiens are also available to be potentially claimed, as the Carolina Hurricanes have placed Cayden Primeau on waivers, while the Toronto Maple Leafs have placed Michael Pezzetta on waivers. 

Primeau's time with the Canadiens organization came to an end this off-season, as he was traded to the Hurricanes in exchange for a 2026 seventh-round pick back in June. This was after he had a 2-3-1 record, an .836 save percentage, and a 4.70 goals-against average in 11 games with the Canadiens last season. He also had a 21-2-2 record, a .927 save percentage, and a 1.96 goals-against average in 26 AHL games with the Laval Rocket in 2024-25.

In 55 games over six seasons with the Canadiens, Primeau had a 13-24-7 record, an .884 save percentage, and a 3.69 goals-against average. 

Pezzetta, on the other hand, signed a two-year contract with the Maple Leafs this off-season. This was after he recorded zero points, 24 penalty minutes, 73 hits, and a minus-2 rating in 25 games with the Canadiens last season. 

In 200 games over four seasons with the Canadiens, Pezzetta posted 15 goals, 23 assists, 38 points, 241 penalty minutes, and 710 hits. 

The Philadelphia Flyers finished the 2025 preseason with a 3-4-0 record, needing a shootout to achieve each of those three wins. Despite some new players impressing, there are causes for concern, too.

Chief among those concerns is the performance of the defense, especially the third defense pairing, as the group continues to adjust to the new Box +1 system preferred by Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet.

The Flyers already waived Dennis Gilbert on Saturday, so the final three roster spots on defense, at least for now, are going to Adam Ginning, Egor Zamula, and free agent addition Noah Juulsen.

Stock Up: Adam Ginning

A disastrous preseason and training camp last year left many, including myself, thinking Ginning, 25, was effectively done for at the NHL level with the Flyers.

Ginning appeared in just one NHL game for the Flyers last season and played a measly eight minutes, but a solid AHL campaign and offseason have put him right back where he was at the end of 2023-24.

The Flyers' former second-round pick won't be mistaken for Cale Makar or Quinn Hughes, but he has the size the team wants at 6-foot-4, 210 pounds, and uses that size far more effectively than Zamula, for example.

I still have reservations about Ginning's ability to move the puck, but he's no more mistake-prone than Zamula in that regard while being a substantially more physical and quicker (relative to his size) player.

He's earned his spot on this roster, though we'll have to see if he keeps it when Rasmus Ristolainen returns from injury.

Stock Down: Egor Zamula

Those of you who have followed my coverage of the Flyers on here often know that I was skeptical of Tocchet's patience for Zamula's play, and it seems that Thursday's preseason loss to the New York Islanders pushed Tocchet over the hump.

Injured Flyers Prospect Missing Out on Big OpportunityIn what is shaping up to be a race to the bottom in the battle for a roster spot on defense, injured Philadelphia Flyers prospect Oliver Bonk is, unfortunately, missing out on a big opportunity.

Zamula, 25, has squarely lost his spot to Ginning and has shown little development over the last two seasons, and he's prone to turnovers and doesn't use his size.

Zamula already carries a $1.7 million cap hit and is on an expiring deal, like Ginning; I can't see him re-signing and/or earning a raise unless he can completely turn over a new leaf by April.

Stock Up: Nikita Grebenkin

Seemingly everyone's favorite Flyers rookie, Nikita Grebenkin has quickly endeared himself to Flyers fans and the coaching staff with his slick playmaking, underrated zone entry skills, and dominant presence around the opponent's net.

The 22-year-old former Toronto Maple Leafs draft pick has produced in a variety of roles up and down the lineup, at times featuring with Sean Couturier, Travis Konecny, Matvei Michkov, Noah Cates, and Bobby Brink.

Grebenkin can be a little over-zealous with his stickhandling and passing at times, but it's refreshing to see a young Flyers player try to make plays at every opportunity.

The 6-foot-2 winger also had two screens to help his teammates score goals in as many games to finish the preseason, which should help him establish a foothold on one of the power play units with time.

Flyers Working to Turn Nikita Grebenkin Into 'A Force'While it's still early, the Philadelphia Flyers may have found themselves a hidden gem in winger prospect Nikita Grebenkin, who continues to impress in the NHL preseason and training camp.

As Grebenkin continues to learn the game, adjust to the language barrier, and clean up some miscues, he could easily become a formidable top-six support winger for the Flyers.

Stock Up: Dan Vladar

As far as goaltending goes, I feel that Dan Vladar had a better season overall than Sam Ersson, at least as far as shot-stopping goes.

I was skeptical of the Flyers signing the 28-year-old to a two-year deal in the summer when they are clearly prioritizing the development of their prospects, which still, apparently, includes Aleksei Kolosov, but Vladar has looked legit.

The former Calgary Flame and Boston Bruin did have a miscue in Saturday's preseason win against the New Jersey Devils, mishandling the puck behind his net and allowing Arseny Gritsyuk to feed Paul Cotter for a slam-dunk score that gave the Devils a temporary 3-2 lead in the third period.

As for the other goals, though? Vladar had no chance on the Kevin Rooney deflection and was hung out to dry when Shane Lachance connected with Lenni Hameenaho on a back-door pass on the power play.

Right now, Ersson probably still starts for the Flyers on opening night, but Vladar is certainly going to push for 50% or more of the starts this season, health willing.

Stock Down: Owen Tippett

To say this is a big year for Owen Tippett would be an understatement, but equal onus should be placed upon the Flyers to put him in a position to succeed.

The 26-year-old played with Trevor Zegras, Matvei Michkov, and Travis Konecny, respectively, to finish the preseason, but those combinations don't work. Why?

Simply put, Tippett is at his best when he generates his own offense with his legs, but often settles for low-danger looks rather than getting in position for high-danger looks.

The Flyers are right for trying to get him more of those high-danger looks with players like Zegras and Michkov, but Tippett would be at his best driving the offense for Cates and Brink, for example.

He can still hit and check and has improved enough defensively to be utilized on the penalty kill, where he can also find some scoring opportunities by using his legs to latch onto breakaways.

Tippett is basically the Jaromir Jagr of Daniel Sprongs--he has considerable offensive talent, but there's a reason the top-six isn't calling for him.

Right now, the chemistry with those top-six players isn't there, and I like Tippett's game more when he plays with guys like Cates and Jett Luchanko.

Yes, the former No. 10 pick is just one year removed from a 28-goal, 53-point campaign, but that was before the days of Michkov and Porter Martone.

The Flyers' $49.6 million man will need to adapt to stay in Philadelphia long-term; his 10-team no-trade list will come into effect on July 1, 2026.

The Pittsburgh Penguins placed five players on waivers on Saturday in their attempt to finalize their 23-man roster ahead of Monday's deadline. 

Defensemen Alexander Alexeyev and Ryan Graves, plus forwards Sam Poulin, Boko Imama, and Rafael Harvey-Pinard were placed on waivers but didn't get claimed by another team. They've now been assigned to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, who are having their training camp and preseason right now.

The following players have been assigned to the @WBSPenguins (AHL):
 
- Alexander Alexeyev
- Ryan Graves
- Rafael Harvey-Pinard
- Boko Imama 
- Sam Poulin

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 5, 2025

The Penguins signed Alexeyev and Harvey-Pinard during free agency in July, and they could be call-up options from WBS if some injuries arise during the season. 

Imama made his Penguins' debut last season and scored one goal in 16 games. He's great in the locker room and can be a physical presence on the ice. 

Poulin has been with the organization since 2019 when the Penguins selected him in the first round of the 2019 NHL Draft. Since then, he has only appeared in 13 NHL games, compiling no goals and two assists. 

Graves is in the third year of a six-year contract he signed during the 2023 offseason and hasn't been the player that the Penguins were hoping they were getting when they brought him in. He had a rough first season in 2023-24 and never improved last year or during training camp this year. 

The Penguins will open the 2025-26 regular season against the New York Rangers on Tuesday. 

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The Ottawa Senators' 2025 preseason schedule has come to a close, and as of this writing, they still haven't made a player cut that would qualify as surprising or, quite frankly, even that interesting. But that's about to change. The season starts on Thursday night in Tampa, and the Senators – like all NHL teams – have to have their 23-man roster filed by Monday at 5 pm.

"We've got some decisions to make," head coach Travis Green told the media after the 3-1 win in Montreal on Saturday night. "With Drake Batherson still being out of the lineup – we'll see if he can start the season – but in the next 24 hours, we'll make some hard decisions and see where we end up."

Right now, they have 31 players still in Camp. Here's the full list from the Sens website, with asterisks that we've placed beside names of players who aren't considered locks for the final 23-man roster..

Forwards

1. Michael Amadio
2. Drake Batherson (injury concern)
3. Nick Cousins
4. Dylan Cozens
5. Lars Eller
6. Claude Giroux
7. Ridly Greig
8. Stephen Halliday*
9. Hayden Hodgson*
10. Jan Jenik*
11. Arthur Kaliyev*
12. Olle Lycksell*
13. Kurtis MacDermid*
14. David Perron
15. Shane Pinto
16. Tim Stützle
17. Brady Tkachuk
18. Fabian Zetterlund

Defense

19. Thomas Chabot

20. Nick Jensen

21. Tyler Kleven (injury concern)

22. Nikolas Matinpalo*

23. Donovan Sebrango*

24. Jake Sanderson

25. Jordan Spence

26. Lassi Thomson*

27. Carter Yakemchuk*

28. Artem Zub

Goalies

29. Leevi Merilainen

30. Mads Sogaard*

31. Linus Ullmark

Last year, the Senators began the year with the full lineup of 23 players, opting for a ratio of 14 forwards, 7 defensemen and two goalies. Complicating decisions this time of the year are things like injuries and who's waiver exempt and who is not.

Among the bubble players, the most intriguing name by far is defenseman Carter Yakemchuk. He was excellent in last year's NHL preseason, leading the Sens with 7 points in 4 games. This year, he had 0 points in four games. His junior numbers also tumbled last season, and he seems like a young man still adjusting to being asked to toggle back his offence to be a better defender.

But it was his offence that caught the eyes of NHL scouts, and it's why the Sens drafted him seventh overall. They're likely asking themselves right now, 'Does Yakemchuk upgrade the right side of our defence enough (or at all) that he should forego some valuable development time in the AHL, where his inevitable mistakes won't be splashed all over TSN highlight reels?'

For all the talk about Jensen's injury over the offseason, he's going to be ready to start the season. Artem Zub is a lock as well, leaving Jordan Spence and Nikolas Matinpalo as the 6-7 options to round out the right side of the defense. So there's no obvious reason to rush Yakemchuk, and what's more, he simply might not be good enough yet to crack this lineup.

We expect him to be joined in Belleville by Lassi Thomson. On the left side, if Kleven isn't ready, Sebrango might get a stay of execution on reassignment. Either way, after appearing in all playoff games last spring, Matinpalo has the edge as the seventh man.

In goal, Sogaard is our odd man out to be reassigned to Belleville, but first, he would need to clear waivers. That will be intriguing to see if some goalie-poor organization takes a shot at a young 6-foot-7 goalie.

Up front, 12 forwards are locks, but some of the lower-rung players may be interchangeable. So, depending on Batherson's injury, we'll keep two or three more forwards beyond that. We're rolling with a group of MacDermid, Kaliyev and Lycksell, and when one eventually has to go down, we're choosing Lycksell. 

Hodgson's stock fell hard with MacDermid's addition on Friday. So Hodgson, along with Halliday and Jenik, will be reassigned to Belleville.

So that's our game plan. Let's see now what the Sens actually do over the next 24 hours.

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