The Nashville Predators may be in need of a new captain.

Current team leader Mike Fisher is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, and the 37-year-old isn't set on returning to the ice next season.

"Right now, I haven't really gotten to that place (to make a decision)," Fisher said, according to Brooks Bratten on the team's website. "I want to separate myself from the game, and honestly, the biggest factor is prayer and figuring out what's next and what God wants. So I'll just try to figure that out, and that's the biggest factor, really."

Coming oh so close to winning the Stanley Cup will certainly be a factor, as the Predators will likely be back in full force next season.

Greater than that, though, are the bonds formed along the way, and walking away from that would be a big deal to Fisher.

"I love playing the game, I love being around the guys; that to me is more important than winning a Cup," he said. "This year was the best year I've had as far as fun and being around just a great group of guys and a city that came together. There's so many positives."

According to Bratten, Predators general manager David Poile has stated he'll have Fisher on his team as long as the center wants to keep playing, meaning the ball is in the player's court.

Fisher recorded four assists and 34 shots in 20 games during Nashville's run to the Cup Final.

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The Washington Capitals acquired forward Tyler Graovac from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for a fifth-round draft pick in 2018, the team announced Wednesday.

The move is likely a ploy by the Capitals so they can make Graovac unprotected at the expansion draft and in turn protect forward Lars Eller from being plucked by the Vegas Golden Knights, according to Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post.

The 24-year-old split last season between the Wild and the American Hockey League. He posted seven goals and nine points in 52 games with the big club, while adding had 10 goals and 15 points in 26 games with Iowa.

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David Poile is setting his priorities straight.

Nashville's longtime GM said he'll begin contract negotiations with pending restricted free agents Ryan Johansen and Viktor Arvidsson next week, according to NHL.com's Robby Stanley.

"We have contracts to do," Poile said. "The most notable are Ryan Johansen and Viktor Arvidsson. Both are restricted free agents (on July 1). We will meet with... both have the same agent. We'll meet with them in Chicago (at the 2017 NHL Draft) to start that process next week."

If Poile can't re-sign Johansen or Arvidsson by July 1, other teams can extend an offer sheet that Nashville will have the opportunity to match, but it is a very rare occurrence.

The trio of Johansen, Arvidsson, and Filip Forsberg found great chemistry as the team's top line - which was known as the "JOFA" line - this past season. Johansen and Arvidsson tied for the team lead in points with 61.

Considering both forwards are just 24 years old, it would make sense to lock them up to long-term deals. If that were the case, Nashville's core - comprised of the "JOFA" line, their big four on D, and Pekka Rinne in net - would all be under contract for at least the next two seasons, therefore extending the team's Stanley Cup window.

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Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner caught some flak on social media for wearing ripped jorts to throw out the first pitch at Tuesday's game between the Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Rays.

Teammate Auston Matthews approved of the look, though, and came to Marner's defense on Twitter:

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Marc-Andre Fleury is a team player in every sense of the term.

On Monday, reports surfaced that Fleury agreed to waive his no-movement clause back in February, which will allow the Pittsburgh Penguins to protect Matt Murray in the expansion draft. It's a bold move for Fleury, but, as he explains, it was the right thing to do for the team.

"The team came forward to me and asked ... it gave them more (flexibility) for the future, for the summer, so they weren't scrambling to trade me," he said, according to Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

"I thought it was the right thing to help the team, to stay with the team and finish the season here and have a chance to play for the Cup again."

That strategy certainly paid off for Fleury, as four months later he won his third career Stanley Cup, winning nine games en route.

With the business side of things in the rear-view mirror, the wait is now on to see where exactly Fleury ends up. While he could be in line to be selected by the Golden Knights, common wisdom would suggest the Penguins will do their best to trade him so they can recoup assets instead of losing him for nothing.

"I've heard my name out there, a lot," Fleury said. "But I don't know. I guess we'll find out soon."

Wherever he ends up, he's simply hoping he can start - an opportunity that was largely lost after Murray stole his job during last year's Cup run.

"I still love the game," he said. "I still love to play. Hopefully, if I can still do that ... it will be appreciated."

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It appears Steve Mason will be tending goal elsewhere for the 2017-18 season.

The Flyers apparently aren't interested in re-signing the former Calder Trophy winner, his agent Anton Thun told Sam Carchidi of The Philadelphia Inquirer.

"In all honesty, he would have hoped the Flyers would have been interested enough to enter into contract negotiations with him right now, but they didn’t, so you move on," Thun said. "That’s business."

Mason, 29, will leave the City of Brotherly Love with the third-most wins in Flyers history with 104, trailing only the team's current general manager Ron Hextall (240) and Hall of Famer Bernie Parent (232).

If there's one word to describe his tenure in Philadelphia's crease, it's probably "inconsistent."

In total, he leaves with a .918 save percentage and a 2.47 goals-against average in 221 starts with the Flyers, but his seasons were often full of extreme highs and lows, and he was never able to put a stranglehold on the starting job.

Hextall instead opted to extend fellow goaltender Michal Neuvirth to a two-year contract back in March. Neuvirth has a .911 save percentage and a 2.50 GAA in 53 career starts with the Flyers.

Thun, of course, backed his client.

"If I was running the team, I'd sign Steve Mason, but of course I'm biased," he said. "They made a decision to sign Michal Neuvirth, which was their choice. I think it probably surprised a bunch of people, but, again, that's the Flyers' choice, and we just have to react to that."

(Photo courtesy: Action Images)

At this point in his career, Mason appears to be your classic "tweener": too good to be a pure backup, but not good enough be a true No. 1. Regardless, there will be work for a very serviceable NHL netminder, especially with two more goaltender spots up for grabs in the league with Vegas entering the fold.

"At the end of the day, there's a goalie marketplace out there, and I think there will be significant opportunities out there for Steve," Thun said.

As for the Flyers, they certainly can't be content with Neuvirth and Anthony Stolarz, who has just four NHL starts under his belt, as their goaltending tandem heading into the season.

Look for them to be one of the many teams in play for a goaltender via trade. It's hard to imagine they'd make a deal with divisional rival Pittsburgh for Marc-Andre Fleury, but Arizona's Mike Smith seems like a good fit as a stop gap.

If the Flyers can't find a viable trade partner, they will have to turn to the list of free-agent goalies headlined by Ryan Miller, Brian Elliott, Jonathan Bernier, and Mike Condon. Yikes.

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Dan Girardi will be greatly missed by the face of the New York Rangers.

That would be franchise goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, who took to Instagram on Wednesday to bid farewell to the defenseman in light of the team's announcement that Girardi's contract will be bought out.

The caption reads as follows:

For 11 years you have left everything you had in front of me. The way you competed and paid the price night in and night out inspired me more than you know. Will miss you on and off the ice. To me you are the definition of a warrior and I will ALWAYS appreciate what you have done for me and our team over the years. Thank you G!!!

During their time together as Rangers, Girardi and Lundqvist went to three Eastern Conference Finals, a Stanley Cup Final, and the 2012 NHL All-Star Game.

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Ottawa Senators defenseman Erik Karlsson underwent surgery to repair torn tendons in his left foot on Wednesday and is expected to miss four months while he recovers, the team announced.

"Erik underwent surgery earlier today in Charlotte, N.C, to repair torn tendons in his left foot," general manager Pierre Dorion said in a statement. "The tears, which occurred during this year's Stanley Cup Playoffs, were found during an MRI as part of an extensive medical evaluation following the season."

Related: Karlsson receives Conn Smythe vote despite not reaching finals

Following the Senators' first-round series against the Boston Bruins, Karlsson admitted to playing with two hairline fractures in his heel, an injury he is believed to have played with for the duration of the postseason.

As for next campaign, the team is hopeful that Karlsson's expected four-month recovery will allow him to be healthy for the start of the 2017-18 season.

Karlsson led all defenseman in scoring in the playoffs with 18 points in 19 games, while finishing sixth overall in the postseason scoring race.

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