Last off-season, the Pittsburgh Penguins signed defenseman Matt Grzelcyk to a one-year, $2.5 million contract in free agency. In the end, it is fair to say that the Penguins got good value in this move, as Grzelcyk fit in nicely with the Metropolitan Division club. 

In 82 games with the Penguins this past season, Grzelcyk scored a goal and hit new career highs with 39 assists and 40 points. With numbers like these, the Charlestown, Massachusetts native certainly gave the Penguins solid offense from the point. He was also noticeably impactful on the power play, as he finished the year with a career-high 15 power-play points. 

However, even after putting together the best offensive season of his nine-year NHL career in 2024-25, Grzelcyk remains an unrestricted free agent (UFA) this off-season. Given the season he had with the Penguins in 2024-25, should Pittsburgh consider reuniting with him? 

If the Penguins signed Grzelcyk, he would have the potential to upgrade their left side, while also giving them another clear option for their power play. The Penguins also have over $13 million of cap space, so they could afford to bring back Grzelcyk easily. 

Yet, at the same time, the Penguins also already have plenty of left-shot defensemen signed for next season. They signed blueliners like Parker Wotherspoon and Alexander Alexeyev in free agency this year and have other left-shot defensemen like Owen Pickering, Ryan Graves, and Ryan Shea to work with. This is where fitting in Grzelcyk could be a challenge, especially when noting that they also have four NHL-caliber right-shot defensemen signed, too. 

Nevertheless, it is going to be interesting to see where Grzelcyk ends up landing this off-season. Given the campaign he had, he should be able to at least land a professional tryout (PTO) from an NHL club. 

Penguins New Goalie Is Big Breakout CandidateThe Pittsburgh Penguins added several new players to their roster this off-season. Perhaps the most intriguing of the bunch is goaltender Arturs Silovs.

The Chicago Blackhawks have several exciting young players in their system as they continue their rebuild. They will certainly be hoping that their promising youngsters can continue to develop in the right direction during the 2025-26 season.

We recently discussed how Blackhawks goaltender Spencer Knight was named the team's top breakout candidate for the 2025-26 campaign by The Hockey News' main site. However, Chris Meaney of NHL.com has now argued that another exciting young player is Chicago's top fantasy hockey breakout candidate for the 2025-26 season - forward Frank Nazar. 

Given the season Nazar just had, it is understandable that Meaney views him as the Blackhawks' top breakout candidate. The 2022 first-round demonstrated that he is already capable of producing solid offense at the NHL level, as he recorded 12 goals, 14 assists, and 26 points in 53 games during the 2024-25 season. These are good numbers, and it would not be surprising in the slightest if his offense goes up in 2025-26, now that he has more NHL experience. 

Meaney also noted that Nazar has the potential to be the Blackhawks' second-line center this upcoming season. Playing in a big role like that could certainly benefit the Detroit, Michigan native, as it would give the opportunity to have plenty of playing time. 

With Nazar getting better as this past season went on, it is certainly possible that he could build off that in 2025-26. It is going to be very intriguing to see if he can put together a big breakout season for Chicago from here. 

Blackhawks New Forward Is Interesting AdditionThe Chicago Blackhawks have made a few additions this off-season in what has been a pretty quiet summer for them. One of their moves was bringing back old friend Sam Lafferty, as they acquired him from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for a 2026 sixth-round pick back in July. This marked the third time that the Blackhawks have traded for Lafferty. 

In case you haven't heard by now, Pittsburgh Penguins' top wingers Rickard Rakell and Bryan Rust are two of the hottest topics of discussion in NHL trade rumors this summer.

And that's all because of the impressive campaigns they put together last season.

For both wingers - each on the wrong side of 30, with Rakell, 32, one year Rust's junior - the 2024-25 season marked a career-best one. Rakell finished the season second only to captain Sidney Crosby in team scoring with 35 goals and 70 points, while Rust was just a tick behind him with 31 goals and 65 points. Both players are capable of putting the puck in the net, and they have each shown immense chemistry with Crosby.

Regardless of the uniform each will be wearing once the puck drops on the season - and, given that training camp is one month out, it's becoming more and more likely that both might still be donning Penguins' sweaters - it's fair to wonder whether or not each player is capable of replicating last season's production. While each would clearly be an asset to the Penguins if they don't wish to tank this season, they could prove just as valuable - if not more valuable - to a contending team if they can sustain the level of play they put together in 2024-25.

So, how realistic is that for each player?

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Rust has been consistent... but he's also aging

If one thing rings true about Rust - aside from, arguably, being one of the most underrated and least talked about players in hockey - he, like Crosby, has set a standard of consistency in Pittsburgh for a while. 

Rust wasn't always a top-six winger. In fact, Rust began the first several seasons of his NHL career as a bottom-six player who killed penalties and did a lot of the "thankless jobs," as former Penguins' head coach Mike Sullivan would so often put it. 

But he has sure blossomed into a top-of-the-lineup player. Even if Rust can be streaky at times in the midst of any given season, he has still managed to produce six consecutive seasons of 20 or more goals and at least 42 points. And those lower point totals have mostly coincided with injury-riddled seasons in which he missed chunks of time. Otherwise, he has sat right around or a tick below point-per-game. 

Can The Penguins Still Rebuild With One Of Rakell Or Rust Around?It seems like Pittsburgh Penguins' forwards Rickard Rakell and Bryan Rust are the subject of Pittsburgh hockey news just about every other day at this point.

But that's part of the catch: Rust's injury history is quite a bit concerning, as - aside from 2022-23, when he played in 8`1 games - he has not appeared in more than 72 games in a season. Some of those seasons were shortened due to the Covid-19 lockdown and fallout from 2020-22, but he still missed a few games in those seasons as well. 

In addition, Rust is no longer a spring chicken. He's 33 years old, and the type of hardline, hybrid power forward game he likes to play hasn't exactly proven sustainable with age in the past. The reality is that Rust's production could fall off a cliff at any given moment, and he has three years left on his deal that pays him $5.1 million annually.

There are some factors like those to consider here - as well as whether or not Rust can sustain this level of play away from Crosby - but it's probably still a safer-than-not gamble to assume that he should be able to put together at least a few more solid campaigns, Crosby or not.

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Rakell's goal-scoring ability is serious... but so is his history

Here's something to consider about Rakell: Realistically, he should never be separated from Crosby while playing for the Penguins. He and the Penguins' legend are magical together, and Rakell potted 35 last year despite not even being deployed on Crosby's line in the latter part of the season.

In fact, that's how it's been for him since he arrived in Pittsburgh at the 2022 trade deadline. When he plays with Crosby, he can score goals. When he's away from Crosby, he can still score goals, but not quite with the frequency that 87's elite playmaking ability sets him up for.

But folks can go back even further than Rakell's Pittsburgh days to see that same pattern.

His best seasons with the Anaheim Ducks from 2016-18 were largely spent alongside another elite playmaking center in Ryan Getzlaf. And then - post-Getzlaf - his production dipped a bit for a few seasons, as some injury and nutrition issues weren't doing him any favors.

Do The Penguins Have A Legitimate Shot At McKenna In 2026?WIth the 2025-26 NHL season just around the corner, teams are looking ahead to their respective training camps beginning in mid-September.

But he was also void of a playmaking center who could set him up to finish, and he didn't really have that again until he was dealt to Pittsburgh. This isn't to suggest that Rakell isn't capable of creating on his own, as he definitely is. But he's capable of elite goal-scoring ability if he's paired with the right centerman.

Therefore, a repeat of last season - or even a near-repeat - largely depends on who Rakell is deployed with alongside with in the lineup. If it's another season alongside Crosby, there's no discernible evidence that Rakell will just forget how to score. And he would more than likely need to be flanking a playmaking center wherever he lands.

There may be a slight hint of co-dependence from Rakell, but he's still a very capable goal-scorer. Banking on his 2024-25 production again, though, might be a bit of a stretch.

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St. Nicklas: A Goalie's Best Friend - August 1, 1997 - Volume 51, Issue 42 - Chuck Carlton 

Before he turned three, Kevin Lidstrom had a good idea about how father Nicklas earns a living. Not that he’s terribly impressed, though.

“He knows that I play hockey,” the elder Lidstrom said. “He sees me on TV, but that’s no big deal. He knows that it’s Daddy and then he’ll go play with his stuff again. Like, whatever. Maybe in a few years, he’ll realize it more.”

In that regard, Kevin is no different than most of the NHL.

They watch Lidstrom log close to 30 minutes a night on defense, launch ferocious one-timers from the point, almost always win the 1-on-1 battles and they shrug. Whatever. Maybe it’s because he’s from Sweden, with the same blend-into–the-wallpaper personality seemingly indigenous to that Nordic country. Maybe it’s because he makes everything seem effortless on cue. Detroit Red Wings’ scout and former teammate Mark Howe opts for the former.

“It’s because of his personality,” Howe said. “He goes out and does a great job, but the media and everybody want to read about the players who are flashy and have the controversial quotes. He goes in, takes a shower, ices down and goes home.”

Lidstrom is the perfect poster boy for anonymous excellence. Red Wing teammate Darren McCarty was baffled by Lidstrom’s exclusion from a Norris Trophy finalist spot last season. “He’s always getting lost in the shuffle,” McCarty said.

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Well, almost. Coach Scotty Bowman, not one to gush about players, salutes Lidstrom. “He’s one of the more underrated defensemen in the league,” Bowman said. “He’s a much better defensive defenseman than people give him credit for. When you compare him to other defensemen in the league, he’s right there.”

That was the case this season. Although Lidstrom wasn’t a Norris Trophy finalist or first- or second-team all star, he might have been both if the voting had been done after the playoffs. Wings' captain Steve Yzerman listed Lidstrom and Conn Smythe winner Mike Vernon as the team’s post-season MVPs.

Wings’ associate coach Dave Lewis, himself an NHL defenseman for 18 seasons, points to the Red Wings’ near-constant use of Lidstrom. “He’s one of the top five or six defensemen in the NHL,” Lewis said. “He’s the first guy we think of to play in a situation. He plays the left side, the right side, he kills penalties. He’s on the ice at the end of the game and he’s on the power play. There’s no time when he doesn’t play.”

The Red Wings’ dependence on Lidstrom, already high, will certainly increase this season. The limousine accident and subsequent head injury to Vladimir Konstantinov has friends, fans and teammates focused on his recovery to a normal life with his family, not hockey. His return for this season, at the least, is highly unlikely.

Aggressiveness, which Konstantinov brought to the table every shift, is the one area critics fault in Lidstrom’s game. Teammates say the only time they’ve seen Lidstrom visibly angry is when he lost a game of Helicopter, a card game brought to the team by its Russian contingent. Even Lidstrom acknowledges his restraint can be mistaken for passivity.

“It’s a tough question,” Lidstrom said. “I think it gets back to the desire to win. Some guys really show it with their aggressiveness, fighting or big hitting. I’m not a big hitter. I don’t fight. I feel I have that inside. I can bear down in those situations and get it out. I think I would be a better hockey player if I could get it out more, be more aggressive and show it in different situations. It’s hard to explain how to get it out.”

Lidstrom finished last season third in scoring among defensemen with 15 goals and 57 points in 79 games. In the playoffs, despite needing 47 shots to record his first goal, he finished with two goals and eight points in 20 games. He and partner Larry Murphy saw the most even-strength shifts against Eric Lindros and the Legion of Doom in the Stanley Cup final. Lindros and power winger John LeClair were a combined minus-10 in the final.

“I try to think of teams in the league that wouldn’t want to have him,” Howe said, “and I can’t think of any. From all the games I saw, I thought Brian Leetch was very deserving of the Norris Trophy. But I thought Nick had a great season, especially in the playoffs when we needed him to play between 25 and 30 minutes and against all of the top lines.”

Growing up in Vasteras, south of Stockholm, Lidstrom played hockey in the winter and soccer in summer and studied to be an engineer. Like most Swedish players, he idolized Borje Salming, Sweden’s first quality contribution to the NHL. “He was my hero, my idol. He was the big guy back then,” Lidstrom said. “I had the opportunity to play with him in the (1991) Canada Cup. He was my partner. It was a big thrill with him being the legend he is, especially back in Sweden.”

Lidstrom was still available in the third round of the 1989 entry draft, part of the Red Wings’ heist of Europeans with later-round picks. Sergei Fedorov, Slava Kozlov and Konstantinov all were taken no earlier than the third round. Lidstrom came to Detroit in 1991, well versed in hockey and English, but still trying to learn North American culture. Countryman Johan Garpenlov, then a Red Wing, helped Lidstrom make the jump.

“There was a little bit of an adjustment, not as much as what our Russians went through,” Lidstrom said. “Sweden is getting more and more like America over here with fast food and everything. It’s real similar. Still, everybody has to make an adjustment. There’s the language. Even though I spoke English and understood everything, there are a lot of things there are different and words I don’t know. There are things maybe you guys take for granted that I had to learn over again.”

The hockey was second nature, despite adjusting to the smaller NHL rinks. He finished his rookie season of 1991-92 with 11 goals and 60 points and was runner-up to Pavel Bure of the Vancouver Canucks for the Calder Trophy. When Howe came to Detroit as a free agent, friend Brad McCrimmon had a scouting report. “He told me, ‘We’ve got a guy who's going to be one of the best defensemen in the league in a couple years,’” Howe recalled.

The second year was less successful for Lidstrom. He never got going and then had to adjust in mid-season to playing with Paul Coffey, acquired from the Los Angeles Kings in a trade. Partnered with Coffey, the highest-scoring and arguably the best-skating defenseman in NHL history, taught Lidstrom much and also forced him to be more disciplined. “Having Paul developed my game even more,” he said.

He bounced back with solid seasons and played in the All-Star Game in 1996 when he posted career highs in goals (17) and points (67). Along the way, he developed one of the best one-timers in the NHL.

“I think I started to work on it more and more after I came over here,” Lidstrom said. “1 don’t think I was shooting the puck as much when I played in Sweden. I was more setting other guys up for shots or down-low plays. Over here, my shots got better and better. We’ve been using it a little more, too. I’ve been kind of the guy, the puck gets to me and I shoot it. That developed after I got over here.

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The Detroit Red Wings were among the more active teams in free agency during the offseason, bringing aboard multiple new players including James van Riemsdyk, Mason Appleton, Ian Mitchell, and Jacob Bernard-Docker. 

However, the Red Wings weren't able to land any of the more notable names which included Mitch Marner, Aaron Ekblad, Sam Bennett, and Brad Marchand. 

It was a tough reality that Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman acknowledged while addressing the early goings of their offseason on July 3.

"We didn’t even get a chance to talk to those guys (the top free agents)," he said. "They all signed with their clubs or were traded before free agency. Not much we can do about that."

Marner was traded to the Vegas Golden Knights by the Toronto Maple Leafs immediately after signing an eight-year, $96 million contract. Additionally, the Florida Panthers managed to re-sign Ekblad, Bennett, and Marchand to new multi-year contracts. 

Continuing with the back-to-back Stanley Cup champions was a difficult offer for Ekblad to turn down, especially given that he has been with the franchise since being selected first overall in the 2014 NHL Draft. 

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Ekblad had been linked to the Red Wings in the days and weeks leading up to free agency, and he could have earned even more in Detroit than the $6.1 million cap hit he ultimately re-signed for in Florida.

NHL Insider James Mirtle, a senior writer for The Athletic, disclosed that the Red Wings were “pushing” to land a big-name free agent and could have offered Ekblad a more lucrative contract.

"I know Detroit was pushing for some of the top potential UFAs this summer, but as mentioned above, a lot of them didn’t end up even getting to market," he wrote in a recent column. "Aaron Ekblad, in particular, could have signed for a much thicker average annual value in Michigan than the $6.1 million he took with Florida." 

Ekblad clearly felt that the appeal of playing for a Stanley Cup contender, combined with the familiarity of the only team he has ever played for, were important factors in his decision. 

The Red Wings had ample salary cap space entering free agency, which was aided by the trade of Vladimir Tarasenko and his entire $4.75 million cap hit to the Minnesota Wild. 

Currently, they still have approximately $12 million with which to work. 

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The Detroit Red Wings were among the more active teams in free agency during the offseason, bringing aboard multiple new players including James van Riemsdyk, Mason Appleton, Ian Mitchell, and Jacob Bernard-Docker. 

However, the Red Wings weren't able to land any of the more notable names which included Mitch Marner, Aaron Ekblad, Sam Bennett, and Brad Marchand. 

It was a tough reality that Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman acknowledged while addressing the early goings of their offseason on July 3.

"We didn’t even get a chance to talk to those guys (the top free agents)," he said. "They all signed with their clubs or were traded before free agency. Not much we can do about that."

Marner was traded to the Vegas Golden Knights by the Toronto Maple Leafs immediately after signing an eight-year, $96 million contract. Additionally, the Florida Panthers managed to re-sign Ekblad, Bennett, and Marchand to new multi-year contracts. 

Continuing with the back-to-back Stanley Cup champions was a difficult offer for Ekblad to turn down, especially given that he has been with the franchise since being selected first overall in the 2014 NHL Draft. 

Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features. 

Ekblad had been linked to the Red Wings in the days and weeks leading up to free agency, and he could have earned even more in Detroit than the $6.1 million cap hit he ultimately re-signed for in Florida.

NHL Insider James Mirtle, a senior writer for The Athletic, disclosed that the Red Wings were “pushing” to land a big-name free agent and could have offered Ekblad a more lucrative contract.

"I know Detroit was pushing for some of the top potential UFAs this summer, but as mentioned above, a lot of them didn’t end up even getting to market," he wrote in a recent column. "Aaron Ekblad, in particular, could have signed for a much thicker average annual value in Michigan than the $6.1 million he took with Florida." 

Ekblad clearly felt that the appeal of playing for a Stanley Cup contender, combined with the familiarity of the only team he has ever played for, were important factors in his decision. 

The Red Wings had ample salary cap space entering free agency, which was aided by the trade of Vladimir Tarasenko and his entire $4.75 million cap hit to the Minnesota Wild. 

Currently, they still have approximately $12 million with which to work. 

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