The Carolina Hurricanes failed to face their demons in the 2025 NHL Playoffs as they lost to the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Final. 

Carolina finished the 2024-25 campaign with 99 points, which placed them second in the Metropolitan Division. 

While the Hurricanes had a successful regular season, the expectations were to win the Stanley Cup, and a team that has faced multiple playoff heartbreaks over the past couple of seasons suffered yet another brutal defeat. 

Andrei Svechnikov believes their loss to the Panthers this past season was the team’s toughest to date, but there’s still hope and confidence within the organization moving forward.

“I don’t know if I can put it into words but obviously it’s your biggest dream,” Svechnikov said. “You’re getting drafted and playing the junior hockey you go through all that time, and playing seven years in the NHL, and all the time you want to get the Cup. 

“I think the last playoff was the hardest one to lose, kind of, because you have a good team and you try to reach for your goal and it just doesn’t happen. But we’ve got a new year and we’ve got a new opportunity.”

Hurricanes general manager Eric Tulsky addressed some of the team’s needs by signing Nikolaj Ehlers and acquiring K’Andre Miller. 

Rod Brind'Amour Feels Hurricanes' Offseason Moves Give Them A Chance To Win Stanley Cup The Carolina Hurricanes made two substantial moves this offseason to bolster their roster in pursuit of a Stanley Cup. 

These new additions intrigue and excite Svechnikov, as he’s looking forward to sharing the ice with them in September for training camp and beyond. 

“I’m very excited,” Svechnikov said. “I think we got a lot better this offseason. Obviously we’ve got to get together and build the chemistry and all that stuff, and the new guys got to learn the system. But they’re some of the best players in this league and excited to have them and see how it’s going to work for us.”

Now, we just wait until everyone’s expectations and thoughts about this new-look Hurricanes team play out in real time.

After 14 seasons in the NHL the former Minnesota Wild goaltender Anton Khudobin has announced his retirement.

He was first drafted by the Wild in the 2007 NHL Draft with the 206th overall pick. He only ended up playing six games across two seasons with the Wild from 2009 to 2011.

Khudobin, 39, played 260 games in his NHL career with six teams. He went 4-1-0 with a .955 save percentage and a 1.39 goals-against average in his six games with Minnesota.

He spent four years with the Boston Bruins and four years with the Dallas Stars where he took the Stars to the Stanley Cup final in 2020.

The 5-foot-11 goaltender finished his career, 114-92-33 with a .916 save percentage and a 2.52 goals-against average. He posted 11 career shutouts and had one of those with the Wild during the 2010-11 season.

Recent Minnesota Wild Stories

Minnesota Wild Sign Long-Time NHL Veteran To PTOThe Minnesota Wild made a move on Monday. The Wild have announced they have signed defenseman Jack Johnson to a professional tryout (PTO).

- Revisiting 2024-25 Bold Predictions.

- Wild's Marco Rossi Having A Big Offseason, Up 14 Pounds.

- Former Wild Prospect Signs With AHL's Laval Rocket.

- Where Kirill Kaprizov Ranks Among NHL Wingers.

Five NHL players hit the 100-point mark this season: Leon Draisaitl for the Edmonton Oilers, Nathan MacKinnon for the Colorado Avalanche, David Pastrnak for the Boston Bruins, Nikita Kucherov for the Tampa Bay Lightning, and Mitch Marner for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

While highlighting the newest members of the 100-point club, NHL archives revealed which teams have had 100-point scorers in a season, and how often.

The 1970-71 Boston Bruins and the 1982-83, 1983-84, and 1985-86 Edmonton Oilers each had four players reach 100 points in a single season. The full list spans five pages with 50 rows per page, meaning 222 teams in NHL history have had at least one 100-point scorer, if not more.

Not on that list? The New Jersey Devils.

Despite three Stanley Cups and multiple winning seasons, the Devils have never had a 100-point scorer. They’re one of just six teams in NHL history without that achievement.

The others: the Utah Mammoth, Nashville Predators, Vegas Golden Knights, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Seattle Kraken. Three of those six are recent expansion teams, joining the league in the past seven years. The Predators and Blue Jackets were both founded in 1997. That leaves the Devils as the oldest franchise without a 100-point scorer, established in 1974 and relocated to New Jersey in 1982.

The Devils do appear in another record, though, one they’d probably rather forget. In 1983-84, they ranked 22nd for the fewest points in a single season, finishing with just 41. They share that spot with the Ottawa Senators, Detroit Red Wings, and their pre-relocation team, the Kansas City Scouts. That year, the Devils played 80 games and posted a 17-56 record.

Earlier this summer, they also found themselves missing from another milestone list: 50-goal scorers.

The Devils Have Three Cups and Still Don’t Have a Single Season 50-Goal ScorerThe National Hockey League released its list of the most recent 50-goal scorers by franchise.

The Devils have proven they can win without a single dominant scorer, leaning on team depth and strong defense. Still, it would be exciting to see them finally crack these offensive leaderboards.

If Jack Hughes can stay healthy, they have a legitimate chance, both to contend for the Stanley Cup and to end their drought in scoring milestones.

Can Jack Hughes Stay Healthy?New Jersey Devils star Jack Hughes has undergone two season-ending shoulder injuries since being drafted first overall in the 2019 NHL Draft.

They also have the potential to finish with the most points in the league, a feat they achieved in 2022-23 when they recorded 112 points.

The Devils have the talent and the pieces. Now, it’s just a matter of putting it all together.

Kevin Fiala’s Friends’ Charity Game in Zurich raised funds for St. Gallen Children’s Hospital and youth hockey, featuring NHL stars vs. ZSC Lions.

Los Angeles Kings Left Winger Kevin Fiala brought NHL star power to Switzerland this summer, hosting the first-ever Fiala’s Friends charity game on Friday at the Swiss Live Arena in Zurich. 

The event was a mix of elite-level hockey with a mission to give back, raising funds for the Children’s Hospital in St. Gallen as well as youth hockey programs for the ZSC Lions and EHC Uzwil. 

A special night in Zürich 👏🖤

Last night, Kevin brought together @NHL players from around the world to face off against the @zsclions in the first ever Fiala’s Friends Charity Game, benefiting the Children’s Hospital of St. Gallen and the youth programs of ZSC Lions and EHC… pic.twitter.com/LGJR2xlnjK

— LA Kings (@LAKings) August 9, 2025

The evening was an exhibition match featuring the ZSC Lions — one of Switzerland's premier professional clubs — and a team of NHL players handpicked by Fiala. 

Dubbed "Fiala's Friends," the team included several Switzerland-born NHL players, along with other elite professionals, giving fans in the area a rare chance to witness their global heroes skate together on local ice in a relaxed, though competitive, environment.

Along with the on-ice activity, the event featured fan interactive experiences like autograph sessions, photo sessions, and merchandise auctions, all of which contributed to the fundraising effort. 

The organizers would like to make the Fiala's Friends Charity Game a yearly tradition, creating a long-term relationship between the NHL and Swiss hockey and making a tangible impact in the community.

To Fiala, the night was more than hockey. It was a night of charity, friendship, and the sport that brought them all together — demonstrating that even off the ice in the off-season, the NHL's best can still make big plays both on and off the ice.

The Buffalo Sabres have been considered to have one of the deepest prospect pools in the NHL, which is in part due to them selecting high in recent drafts because of their not qualifying for the playoffs. The Sabres have displayed an eye for talent, but the organization’s developmental model has not yielded enough results. 

Leading up to the opening of training camp in mid-September, we will look at the club's top 40 prospects. All are 25 years old or younger, whose rights are currently held by the Sabres or are on AHL or NHL deals, and have played less than 40 NHL games. 

Other Sabres Stories

Projecting Sabres Trade Cost - Bryan Rust

Six Former Sabres Who Signed Elsewhere

#31 - Sean Keohane - Defense (Harvard - NCAA)

Keohane was selected in the sixth round of the 2023 NHL Draft and is a long-range prospect with impressive physical tools. A native of the Boston area, the blueliner played at Dexter Southfield Prep in Massachusetts and was slated to play a full season in the USHL with Tri-City before heading to Harvard, but after 16 games, he shifted to West Kelowna in the BCHL, where he posted 14 points (6 goals, 8 assists) in 25 games.

The 6’4”, 205 lb. defenseman had two assists in 11 games for Harvard as a freshman and his role is expected to increase with the Crimson this fall. The 20-year-old has excellent skating ability, but there are holes in his game at both ends of the ice that could be honed playing for Harvard, which has traditionally done a good job at developing prospects.

Elite Prospects indicates that Keohane “flashes nuanced defensive skating, allowing him to push an absurd amount of aggression defending the rush. He's physical, jumping off the net front to punish attackers on the end boards and tries to clog lanes with anticipation-based reads, pushing nastiness after the whistle.”

Follow Michael on X, Instagram, and Bluesky @MikeInBuffalo

NHL Network has revealed its list of the top 20 wings in the League, as determined by the network’s producers and analysts.

Filip Forsberg of the Nashville Predators comes in at No. 18, dropping four places from his No. 14 ranking from last year.

The 30-year-old left winger led the Predators with 31 goals and 45 assists for 76 points in 2024-25, playing in all 82 of the team’s games.

Forsberg’s 30-plus goal season marked the fifth time in his 13-year NHL career he has scored at least 30 goals in a season. No other Preds player has more than two 30-goal campaigns.

His 318 career goals is tops all-time on the Predators, and he has played all 82 regular-season games for the second straight year.

Forsberg comes in just behind Alex Ovechkin, who is No. 17 on the list. He’s ahead of the Los Angeles Kings’ Adrian Kempe (20th) and Matt Boldy of the Minnesota Wild (19th).

The native of Ostervala, Sweden has totaled 681 points (318-363-681) over 780 NHL games. He has 85 power-play goals, passing Shea Weber for most all-time among Predators skaters by notching his 81st on Jan. 18.

The Hockey News projects Forsberg to be paired with Jonathan Marchessault on the first line along with Ryan O’Reilly at center. While Forsberg may have fallen several spots on this year’s list, his drop in production from 2023-24 (48-46-94) was due in large part to the Predators’ line shuffling and offensive inconsistency across the board.

If anyone is primed for a turnaround season, it would be Forsberg.

Here is the complete list.

20. Adrian Kempe, Los Angeles Kings

19. Matt Boldy, Minnesota Wild

18. Filip Forsberg, Nashville Predators

17. Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals

16. Jason Robertson, Dallas Stars

15. Clayton Keller, Utah Mammoth

14. Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa Senators

13. Brandon Hagel, Tampa Bay Lightning

12. Jesper Bratt, New Jersey Devils

11. Jake Guentzel, Tampa Bay Lightning

10. Artemi Panarin, New York Rangers

9. Kyle Connor, Winnipeg Jets

8. Sam Reinhart, Florida Panthers

7. Matthew Tkachuk, Florida Panthers

6. William Nylander, Toronto Maple Leafs

5. Mitch Marner, Vegas Golden Knights

4. Mikko Rantanen, Dallas Stars

3. Kirill Kaprizov, Minnesota Wild

2. David Pastrnak, Boston Bruins

1. Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay Lightning

Former Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Chad Ruhwedel has announced his retirement from the NHL.

Ruhwedel, who went undrafted, spent over a decade in the NHL and played in 369 games before calling it a career on Tuesday. He broke into the NHL with the Buffalo Sabres and spent four seasons with them before joining the Pittsburgh Penguins for seven seasons. 

He was part of the Penguins' 2016-17 Stanley Cup team, playing in 34 games that season and compiling two goals and 10 points. He also played in six playoff games. 

The Penguins congratulated Ruhwedel via Twitter/X once his retirement was made official. 

Congratulations on your retirement, Chad! Forever part of the 2017 Stanley Cup team 🏆 https://t.co/VaxeCrKP2Z

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) August 12, 2025

Ruhwedel ended his career with the New York Rangers after the Penguins traded him during the 2024 trade deadline. He played in five NHL games this past season but spent most of the year with the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack. 

In his prime, he was a perfect sixth/seventh defenseman on a contending team. He never brought a ton of offense, but he was always very reliable in his own zone and was super steady. 

He was exactly what the Penguins needed in a depth defenseman. 

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Featured Image Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

The Montreal Canadiens are one of the NHL's most exciting teams right now, as they are on the rise and have several promising young players on their roster. After making the playoffs in 2024-25 and following that up with a busy off-season, their goal will be to take another notable step in the right direction this upcoming campaign. 

With all of the young talent the Canadiens have, they certainly have some breakout candidates heading into the 2025-26 campaign. In a recent article for The Hockey News' main site, Jared Clinton highlighted Canadiens defenseman Kaiden Guhle as a prime breakout candidate for the Original Six club for this upcoming season.

Guhle has been cementing himself as a key part of the Canadiens' blueline due to his strong all-around play, so it would not be surprising in the slightest if he took another step forward next season. His steady play is what helped him land a six-year, $33.3 million contract extension back in July of last year, which begins during the 2025-26 season.

If Guhle hits a new level with his play, his contract could end up aging incredibly well for the Canadiens. When noting that he is still only 23 years old and entering just his fourth NHL season, the possibility of him improving further is certainly there.

In 55 games this past season with the Canadiens, Guhle recorded six goals, 12 assists, 16 points, 104 hits, and a plus-6 rating. Overall, it was another solid year for the left-shot defenseman, and it will be interesting to see how he follows it up during the 2025-26 season from here. 

Canadiens New Forward Should Become Big PieceThe Montreal Canadiens have brought in multiple new players this off-season, and forward Zack Bolduc is undoubtedly among the most notable. The Canadiens acquired Bolduc from the St. Louis Blues in exchange for defenseman Logan Mailloux last month. With this, Montreal and St. Louis swapped two 2021 first-round picks in one of the most intriguing trades of the summer. 

The Chicago Blackhawks have not had as busy of an off-season as they did last summer, but they still have made some moves. They improved their overall depth, as they brought in players like Andre Burakovsky, Sam Lafferty, and Dominic Toninato. They also made a significant move when they signed Ryan Donato to a four-year, $16 million contract extension back in June. 

Now that we are in August, things have naturally slowed down in the NHL. While this is the case, the Blackhawks still have an important move to make. At the time of this writing, defenseman Wyatt Kaiser remains a restricted free agent (RFA). With Kaiser being one of the team's most promising young blueliners, there is no question that they need to get him signed to his new deal. 

Kaiser quietly had a solid season with the Blackhawks this past campaign, as he recorded four goals, eight points, 54 hits, 93 blocks, and an even plus/minus rating in 57 games. He also noticeably showed signs of improvement as the campaign rolled on, which is certainly encouraging for a Blackhawks club that is looking to take that next step. 

With Kaiser having the potential to become a significant part of the Blackhawks' blueline, they should look to get him re-signed before training camp is here. It will be fascinating to see what happens on that front from here.

Blackhawks Goalie Named Top Breakout CandidateWith the Chicago Blackhawks rebuilding, they now have a ton of promising young players who have the potential to become big parts of their roster.