The Carolina Hurricanes made one of the biggest splashes of the day, trading a conditional first-round pick, a second-round pick and rookie defenseman Scott Morrow to the New York Rangers in exchange for defenseman K'Andre Miller.

(The trade and deal for Miller was first reported by Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman and the details of the return to the Rangers was first reported by New York Post's Larry Brooks.)

The deal is also a sign-and-trade as Miller, a pending RFA, comes over fresh off of signing an eight-year, $60 million extension.

"K'Andre is a defenseman who we feel is a very strong fit for the way we play," said Carolina GM Eric Tulsky. "He is just approaching his prime and we are confident that he will excel in a Hurricanes sweater.”

Miller, 25, is a towering defenseman, standing at 6-foot-5, who's also one of the better skaters in the league.

The blueliner has a strong first touch and great transitional skills, able to jump into plays and lead and facilitate the rush, things the Hurricanes really emphasize in their system.

Miller's game looks like it will perfectly fit and complement Carolina's style, now the only question is if he can elevate that game.

A few seasons prior, Miller looked to be on a meteoric rise as a true top-end, two-way defender.

However, the 25 year old has struggled a bit more in the past two seasons, especially when it came to his rush defense and entry denials.

He has a great stick and long reach, so it's baffling that those were the things he struggled with in New York. He had really good penalty kill numbers, but 5v5 wasn't always pretty.

Perhaps part of those struggles can also be attributed to the revolving door of coaches that the Rangers have brought in. Miller hasn't had any sort of stability in New York in that regard, so perhaps an established team and culture like Carolina's can bring out his best.

Miller has a lot of raw potential with his size and the flashes of brilliance he's shown, so the Canes are willing to take a gamble on that upside in their system.

And hey, the last time the Hurricanes traded a first-round pick to New York for a left-handed defenseman, it worked out pretty well (looking at you Brady Skjei).

Going the other way to New York is a conditional 2026 first (top-10 protected and then the better between Dallas and Carolina's), a 2026 second and Scott Morrow.

Morrow, 22, showed a lot of potential, but it seemed clear to me that he wasn't going to cut it in Carolina's system.

An offensive defenseman, Morrow has good instincts, but he struggled with the speed of the NHL and his skating leaves much to be desired.

He's the type of player who struggles to recover if he makes a mistake and his gap control was rather poor too.

Obviously he's only 22 and could still develop into a really good NHL player, he was named to the AHL's Top Prospect Team this season and put up consistent points in both the NHL and AHL during the regular season.

But the fact of the matter is that the Canes are a better team today with Miller than with Morrow.

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The Vancouver Canucks’ third free agent signing of the day was Jimmy Schuldt, who the team signed to a two-year, two-way contract. His signing was announced at the same time as new (and old) Canucks Mackenzie MacEachern and Joseph LaBate. 

Schuldt, an undrafted defenceman, played for St. Cloud State University for four seasons and captained the team for three of them. In this span of time, he scored 38 goals and 80 assists in 156 games, including a season that saw him tally 35 points in 36 games. After this, he made his NHL debut with the Vegas Golden Knights, adding an assist in the lone game on April 6, 2019. 

After this, Schuldt spent five seasons in the AHL — one with the Chicago Wolves (2019–20), one with the Henderson Silver Knights (2020–21), one with the Rochester Americans (2021–22), and two with the Coachella Valley Firebirds (2022–24). In the 2022–23 season, he scored eight goals and 24 assists in 71 of the Firebirds’ games. In the team’s Calder Cup campaign that saw them lose to the Hershey Bears in the Finals, Schuldt posted five goals and four assists in 26 games. 

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Schuldt returned to the NHL in the 2024–25 season, signing a one-year contract with the San Jose Sharks last season. He played in eight games for the Sharks and spent the rest of the season with the team’s AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda. In 64 AHL games, Schuldt put up six goals and 15 assists. 

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The St. Louis Blues worked hard to try to re-sign forward Radek Faksa, but he is now heading elsewhere. 

According to NHL insider Frank Seravalli, the Dallas Stars have signed Faska to a three-year contract, where he will have a $2 million average annual value.

Sources say #TexasHockey are bringing back center Radek Faksa: 3 years x $2 million.

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) July 1, 2025

Faksa is certainly a player who the Stars know well, as he was their first-round pick in 2012 and spent his first nine NHL seasons with them. His initial stint with the Stars ended during this past off-season when the Blues acquired him for future considerations. Now, after a year in St. Louis, he is returning to Dallas. 

The Blues will miss Faksa, as he was a solid bottom-six forward for them this past season. In 70 games, he recorded five goals, 15 points, and 115 hits. He was also very successful at the dot, winning 57% of his faceoffs. 

Overall, Faksa going back to Dallas ultimately makes sense. He was a nice part of their roster for several years, and he will be once again after signing this new three-year deal. 

Blues Sign Center Nick Bjugstad To Two-Year, $3.5 Million ContractMARYLAND HEIGHTS, Mo. -- The

Photo Credit:  © James Carey Lauder-Imagn Images

A former Vancouver Canuck has made his way back to the organization in free agency. Center Joseph LaBate signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Canucks on July 1, returning to the organization after seven years away. 

LaBate was drafted by the Canucks in 2011, being picked 101st overall and in the fourth round. He spent four seasons at the University of Wisconsin and was named an assistant captain during his last year with the team (2014–25). LaBate scored 25 goals and 40 assists in 115 games played with Wisconsin before signing his entry-level contract with Vancouver and joining the Utica Comets for two games in 2015. 

The Canucks draft pick made his NHL debut on November 23, 2016 against the Arizona Coyotes and played in 13 of the team’s games in the 2016–17 season. He spent two more seasons with the Comets before joining the Belville Senators of the AHL for three seasons. After, he played in one season with the Milwaukee Admirals and one with the Chicago Wolves, before heading overseas and spending one year with Barys Astana of the KHL. 

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LaBate made his return to the NHL in the 2024–25 season, signing a one-year deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets. He played in six of their games and tallied one assist. During the rest of the season, he played with their AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters, scoring eight goals and 13 assists in 51 games. 

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The Pittsburgh Penguins are adding more size and grit to their forward group. 

According to TSN's Darren Dreger, the Penguins have signed forward Justin Brazeau to a two-year, $3 million contract. Starting next season, the 6-foot-6 winger will have a $1.5 million cap hit. 

Justin Brazeau signs 2 years at $1.5 mil per with the Penguins.

— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) July 1, 2025

Brazeau has the potential to be a nice addition to the Penguins' bottom six. When playing at his best, he provides decent secondary offensive production and a good amount of grit. Furthermore, he also works on the power play because of his net front presence ability. 

Brazeau recorded 11 goals, 22 points, and 123 hits in 76 games this season split between the Boston Bruins and Minnesota Wild. He also appeared in six playoff games for the Wild, posting two assists and a plus-1 rating. 

Overall, this is a solid depth move for the Penguins. Brazeau should give their bottom six a bit of a boost, and it will be intriguing to see what kind of campaign he has in 2025-26 from here. 

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Photo Credit: © Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images

Compared to a year ago, the start of free agency was very quiet for the Nashville Predators. 

During the 2024 offseason, the Predators landed two of the hottest forwards in the market: Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault. 

This year, its focus was "fixing the defense," and that's exactly what the Predators did, adding two defensemen: Nicolas Hague from the Vegas Golden Knights and Nick Perbix from the Tampa Bay Lightning. 

"We've got some great prospects on the way, but I felt two things: we wanted to get bigger and we want to get younger," Predators General Manager Barry Trotz said. "The deal we made with Vegas with that in mind. You're getting a 6-foot-6 defenseman [Hague] who we project is going to be in a top 4 and is going to play high minutes." 

Nashville definitely has height in its defense, averaging 6-foot-2-inches among its rostered defensemen. Perbix bumped that average as he is 6-foot-4-inches. 

This is going to be a heightened role for Hague, as he primarily played in Vegas' bottom pairing. This past season, he had 12 points in 68 games, 40 penalty minutes, and was a minus-2.

He has a hard shot, but Hague is below the league's 50th percentile when it comes to skating and speed bursts. 

Trotz believes that Hague is a good addition to the roster, giving the Predators needed depth on the backend and helping the team achieve it's overall goal of making the defense better. 

"If you can't defend, you can't win," Trotz said. 

One of the most significant talking points of the offseason has been the Predators' lack of depth at center. Nashville drafted one center, Brady Martin, fifth overall, and has not picked up one in free agency yet. 

While the Predators are still "shopping" the market, Trotz said improving center depth is going to rely on stronger play along the wings and more consistency at defense. 

 "On paper, it's not a deep center group. There's different ways to win," Trotz said. 

The Predators also extended a qualifying offer to forward Luke Evangelista, who reached the end of his three-year, entry-level contract. The Predators' 2020 second-round draft pick scored 32 points in 68 games last season. 

In need of more help from the wing and wanting a younger look, Trotz went so far as to call Evangelista "the future." 

"We're just trying to find a term that fits," Trotz said on Evangelista's qualifying offer. "I would like to go longer. The agents are hesitant to go longer on term."

After extending a crop of players within the organization, the Vancouver Canucks have signed some free agents to short-term deals. Around 2:00 pm PT today, the team announced that they have signed forward Mackenzie MacEachern to a two-way, two-year contract. MacEachern spent the past two seasons with the St. Louis Blues organization. 

MacEachern, a forward, was drafted 67th overall by the Blues in 2012. He played in three seasons with Michigan State University, scoring 33 goals and 35 assists in 108 games played with the team. From there, he spent two seasons with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL, before making his NHL debut for the Blues on January 10, 2019. In his first NHL season, he tallied three goals and two assists in 29 games played, and was part of the St. Louis team that won the Stanley Cup against the Boston Bruins. 

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MacEachern proceeded to spend the next three seasons with St. Louis, playing 51 games in the 2019–20 season and slotting into the lineup for five of their postseason matches. He had eight goals and six assists in 86 games with the Blues before signing with the Carolina Hurricanes in free agency in 2023. While he didn’t play a regular season game for the Hurricanes, he did take part in eight of the team’s playoff games, scoring a goal and an assist. 

In another short stint with the Blues in the 2024-25 season, MacEachern had 12 goals and 20 assists in 40 games with their AHL affiliate, the Springfiled Thunderbirds. 

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